The Honourable Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa, has directed the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) to immediately suspend all enforcement actions nationwide following recent incidents in Lagos State.

The Minister gave the directive on Friday, following the recent incident involving the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) during its national enforcement exercise in Lagos State over the noncompliance with the registration of their staff members.

The decision, she said, paves the way for a more inclusive, transparent, and consultative stakeholder engagement process, which the Honourable Minister will personally lead in the coming weeks.

While reaffirming NIHOTOUR’s legal mandate to regulate standards, maintain a register of personnel, practitioners, and professionals, and ensure compliance across Nigeria’s hospitality, tourism, and travel sectors, the Minister called for calm and mutual understanding among all stakeholders.

“The industry must be driven by standards, but our approach must also reflect our shared humanity. Compliance must not come at the expense of dialogue.”

A multi-stakeholder roundtable will be convened shortly to harmonize expectations, deepen collaboration, and reposition the industry for sustainable growth in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR and also his compassionate approach of tempering justice with mercy . The Ministry remains dedicated to strengthening dialogue and strategic partnerships with all sectoral stakeholders to build an ecosystem rooted in trust, innovation, and shared prosperity.

Minister Musawa commended the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN) and other professional bodies for their steadfast commitment to advancing sectoral growth and cohesion, and reaffirmed her commitment to supporting NIHOTOUR in its ongoing transformation into a dynamic, responsible, and industry-aligned regulatory institution working collaboratively for national development.