‘COVID-19: Why stakeholders must be ready for the unusual business’

A travel stakeholder in the Nigeria tourism and travel industry has called on Stakeholders to be ready for greater challenges ahead of the post COVID-19 era as things will not be business as usual.

The Managing Director/CEO, Dvine Travel brokers, Mr Olumuyiwa Salami, who disclosed in an interview with TravelpulseandMICE, recently said travel and tourism business which is the most hit during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown will need a strategic approach to resume back for active business.

The industry is a complicated one because of its value chain activities that cut across all aspects of human endeavour. Virtually all the components of tourism and travels and ancillery activities are directly or indirectly linked with every global business, so there is need for more care and precision in facing post COVID-19 era.

“I have seen different presentations on zoom and the new media, but I must tell you that some feature sdid not really capture the essence of the zoom meeting because some people still see the discussion as a normal one business nothing strategic about the outing, while others are putting things straight.

“On my part, I felt we should start looking at major operations of key stakeholders across board, which includes the airlines, hospitality, aviation, destination and service accommodations.

“How are we going to integrate back to the business environment, are our hotels safe and ready to receive customers, the aircraft; how serviceable are they and how equipped are they to start operations?

Salami, who strongly believes in a new order of approach to business in the post COVID-19 era said stakeholders must be ready for any change as the lockdown is being relaxed.

According to him “To be ready, is to have good plans for passengers and also make available adequate screening procedures at points of international entry and departure and locations in which people come in close contact with one another.

“Also the authority at any point of embarkment and disembarkment must develop the best quick responses mechanism possible to meet any emergency situation(s). To accomplish this task, tourism officials have to be up-to-date, highlight preventive measures being taken within the tourism industry to protect travellers.”

“We must create as many as possible alliances between the government, medical and tourism organisations as well as the media to get real facts into the public and to prevent unnecessary panics from our post COVID-19 plans.”

Salami is optimistic that the tourism industry will surely conquer the present situation, but noted that “though the pandemic have not only made some business owners to close shop and also post threat to human existence but if we plan well, things will take shape in no time.

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