On Thursday, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, reaffirmed his administration’s dedication to transforming the Badagry area into a tourist destination city. He emphasized that the ancient city of Badagry boasts numerous historical and tourist attractions, making it a significant hub for tourism.
During a working tour and visit to Badagry Tourism sites and projects, Governor Sanwo-Olu reiterated his commitment. He highlighted that the visit underscored his dedication to understanding the needs and challenges of the people of Badagry firsthand, ensuring ongoing progress and development in the region.
Speaking to journalists during the working tour, Governor Sanwo-Olu affirmed his administration’s commitment to finishing ongoing projects in Badagry and revitalizing heritage sites. He emphasized the importance of showcasing Badagry’s tourism potential, aiming to tell a captivating story about its offerings on Nigeria’s tourism landscape. He described the visit as an integral part of his administration’s tourism strategy, allowing him to assess completed initiatives and identify areas for further improvement firsthand.
“The visit is really part of our tourism ecosystem, and I have had to come and see things for myself to evaluate what we have done, additional things that we need to do, and how we intentionally make Badagry, an all of the tourism potential that it has, a real destination.
“For us, it is to complete the ongoing projects that we have seen, to restock some of the heritage sites that we have seen, to generally preserve what we have, and to speak a compelling story about what Badagry holds for the tourism potential of our country.
“You have also seen that Badagry actually has a major face. There are lots of roads that you have seen, including dual carriage roads that are nearing completion, and you have all seen that we came around the last time to open a hospital. You have seen roads that have been done extensively.
“Indeed, I am very impressed with Badagry because it is actually wearing a more cleaner road. We all came by road from Lagos Island, and you could see that it took us just about an hour and a half from Lagos and down to Badagry. So, these are journeys that have hitherto taken almost four hours.
“We have experienced it ourselves, and I can see that the citizens are very excited,” the governor stated.
Furthermore, he pledged not to leave any part of Lagos underdeveloped as long as he is the Governor.
“We will make sure that no part of Lagos is left underdeveloped, and with tourism being a major cardinal of our THEMES Agenda, I needed to come and see things for myself too and also see how we can help.
“You saw that there are a few projects we need to complete around the Marina in Badagry, but I am satisfied, knowingly, that we still have a lot of opportunities to do for Nigeria.
“You can see that on the tour, the Chairman of the Diaspora Commission is here with us. We have a diaspora agency already in our state as well.
“It is really to make Lagos and Badagry, in particular, a tourist destination for all of our international and local audiences to know that we are ready to boost tourism,” he said.
The governor, joined by the Chairman/CEO of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, along with members of the Lagos State Executive Council and Lagos State House of Assembly, as well as officials of the Lagos State Diaspora Commission, toured the recently restored and upgraded Slave Market Museum International Vlekete Badagry.
Sanwo-Olu additionally toured several key sites, including the Badagry Heritage Museum, the Agia Tree site where Christianity was first preached in 1842, Nigeria’s first-storey building, the first Christian burial site, the Hospital Road construction project, and the Old Governor’s Lodge, a 70-room hotel complex purposefully constructed for accommodation.
Join our WhatsApp community via https://goquick.ly/cj8q2 for instant and latest news updates.