travel and tourism business confidence index in nigeria: issues and challenges

This article examined travel and tourism business confidence indices in Nigeria. The study relied on 2013 travel and tourism competitiveness index report of 140 countries conducted by the world economic forum in collaboration with Deloitte, International Air Transport Association (IATA), and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). Based on the report, the ranking and position of Nigeria among the 140 countries surveyed is subjected to analysis in these key areas: (1) travel and tourism regulatory framework; (2) travel and tourism business environment and infrastructure; and (3) travel and tourism human, cultural, and natural resources. The position of Nigeria in the report is subjected to a five-point Likert scale of: 1-30, excellent; 31-60, good, 61-90, fair 91-120 and 121- above, poor for ease of interpretation. The findings show that travel and tourism regulatory framework that supports tourism investment in Nigeria is not encouraging, the current state of the Nigeria travel and tourism business environment and infrastructure did not encourage tourism investment, and the needed human, cultural, and natural resources for travel and tourism investment in Nigeria are in a sorry state. In view of the findings, the study recommended various solutions for enhancing the competitive index of tourism sector in Nigeria.