Nigerian Travel Agencies Target Ghana in Intra-African Tourism Push
Nigeria's top travel agencies are heading to Ghana to forge B2B partnerships and tackle travel barriers, a test case for unlocking tourism revenue under the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) is sending its executive council to Safari World in Ghana for a seven-day business mission aimed at opening bilateral tourism trade and integrating West African travel markets.
The retreat comes as regional capitals attempt to translate the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) framework into tangible commercial activity. For the travel and aviation sectors, this means dismantling the visa restrictions, limited route networks, and regulatory friction that have historically suppressed intra-continental tourism revenue.
NANTA intends to use the Safari Valley facility as a base to build joint destination marketing products. The association’s explicit goal is to position the Ghanaian eco-tourism park as a premier destination for Nigeria’s massive leisure travel market. By shifting focus from policy discussions to actionable B2B contracts, the group hopes to demonstrate a profitable model for regional tourism.
Air connectivity remains a primary bottleneck for cross-border commerce in West Africa. Ibom Air is serving as the mission’s official carrier, a commercial endorsement that signals potential route stabilization or capacity increases between Lagos and Accra. If the joint marketing push generates sustained passenger demand, it could incentivize further airline investment in the corridor.
NANTA president Yinka Folami, who is leading the delegation from Lagos, framed the initiative as a practical step toward regional integration. “Nigeria and Ghana share history, culture, trade and people, and hence, the future of our tourism cannot be built in silos. This retreat is about moving from policy to practice — creating real products, real partnerships, and real movement of travelers between Accra and Lagos,” Folami stated.
Alongside strategic meetings and site visits at Safari World’s conference facilities, delegates plan to address broader logistical and diplomatic hurdles. The agenda includes discussions on visa facilitation and the persistent issue of Afrophobia at border crossings. For investors, the outcome of the mission will serve as a litmus test for whether AfCFTA's liberalization promises can actually drive capital into regional tourism infrastructure.
