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ABUJA – Saint Lucia has pledged support for Nigeria in designing a robust community tourism programme, aimed at grassroots development and economic empowerment.
The Caribbean tourism destination will also share expertise on certification standards and train Nigerian hospitality professionals.
This initiative is part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on the sidelines of President Bola Tinubu’s recent state visit to Saint Lucia.
The MoU covers joint cooperation on tourism development, investment promotion, and the advancement of culture and creative industries.
A copy of the MoU, made available to newsmen from the Office of the Saint Lucian Prime Minister,Philip Pierre, outlined three core areas of collaboration.
These include: Tourism Development, Culture and Creative Industries, and Capacity Building.
Under the Tourism Development: Saint Lucia will support Nigeria in the design of a Community Tourism Programme, share expertise on certification and standards, and provide training for hospitality workers.
Under Culture and Creative Industries, Nigeria will facilitate Saint Lucia’s participation in the Lagos Fashion Week 2025 scheduled for October.
Both nations will promote cultural exchange through events like the Saint Lucia Carnival and Jazz & Arts Festival.
In Capacity Building, the countries will collaborate on training in sound engineering, music production, and cultural heritage preservation.
The MoU was signed by Nigeria’s
Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, and her Saint Lucian counterpart, Dr Ernest Hiliare.
The initial one-year agreement sets up a Joint Committee to implement a five-year work plan with measurable outcomes.
This partnership marks a major milestone in South-South cooperation and sectoral development between Africa and the Caribbean.
It reflects a strategic shift towards deeper functional collaboration between both regions. (NAN)
