Travel/Tourism
Heritage Bank, FG, Lagos Partner on Diaspora Return in Badagry
By Dipo Olowookere
Heritage Bank Plc has partnered with the Office of the Senior Special Adviser to the President on Diaspora and Foreign Affairs and the Lagos State Government (LASG) to organise the 2017 edition of Diaspora Festival Badagry with the theme Door of Return Ceremony Badagry.
The festival, which held recently in the ancient town of Badagry, was hinged on ‘The Door of Return Ceremony’ and cultural displays.
The Door of Return Ceremony forms the ideological basis of the festival, symbolises the emancipation of the black race as well as an expression of the Diaspora string and affiliation to African culture and heritage.
It was also an advocacy programme that raised awareness about the continuous fight against oppression, neo-colonialism and enslavement and represented a symbolic boat trip by notable black persons in the Diaspora (emigrants, descendants of slaves and leaders of thoughts) where the boat convey them to the ‘Point of No Return’ in Badagry which is the door way through which slaves were charted away as chattels to the plantations in the Americas, with the intention of never to return to their homeland again.
The two-day event featured carnival procession, boat regatta, fishing competition, dark era procession, diaspora dinner, beauty pageant, fashion show, cultural displays, heritage site visits, heritage night, the festival market, international music, concert and talent hunt.
The event was graced by senior officials in the Presidency, traditional rulers, corporate bodies and tourists who travelled from far and near to witness various activities that were featured, a development which made the ancient city of Badagry to come alive.
Speaking on Heritage Bank’s involvement in the programme, Mrs Ozena Utulu, a member of the bank’s Brand Management & Compliance Unit, said Heritage Bank partnered with the organisers of the fiesta because it was an event that promoted the African heritage and culture and resonated with what the brand stood for.
She said, “Heritage Bank speaks and is proud of the African cultural heritage, which is the essence of who and what they are,” adding that the bank is committed to Africans in Diaspora because when they returned, they will need a financial institution to bank with and Heritage Bank will be there to care for them.
Also speaking during the event, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Senior Special Adviser to the President on Diaspora and Foreign Affairs, who declared that the ‘Door- of- No-Return made popular during the transatlantic slave trade in Africa has now become the Door of Return to Africans in the Diaspora through Badagry, also noted that the development would showcase the African continent to the world in good light and on a positive note.
The marketing consultant to the project, Mr Rufai Ladipo, CEO of Agile Communications Limited said the Diaspora Festival Badagry is an iconic and symbolic festival with a long tradition of celebrating the best in diversity in a rich African culture and heritage.
“Over the past five years, this much loved festival has attracted 500,000 footfalls as well as national and international audiences,” Mr Ladipo observed, adding that the festival has gained considerable traction as one of the West Africa tourist attractions in the month of August which is recognised internationally as a tourism month.
He said the festival was a celebration of the strong seated roots in Africa cultures, its spread and its influence in the Diaspora, remarking that the festival is a platform that amplifies and draws awareness to modern slavery and neo-colonialism and remembers the victims of the transatlantic slave trade.
Besides, he said the festival sought to showcase the growth, beauty, grace and diversity of rich African culture and served as a beacon for Diasporas to relate with their heritage and found their home.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A travel card designed for tourists, business visitors, Diaspora returnees has been launched by Verve in partnership with Providus Bank.
Known as the ProvidusVerve Travel Card, the Naira-based travel card will allow inbound travellers to enjoy a smooth, secure, and convenient payment experience throughout their stay in Nigeria. It was powered by Verve’s secure.
Created to support the surge of tourists, expatriates, business visitors, conference delegates, and returning diaspora expected during the festive Detty December season, the ProvidusVerve Travel Card enables seamless payments for transportation, hotels, dining, shopping, entertainment, and everyday essentials nationwide.
The card also works on select global merchant platforms that accept Verve, including Netflix, Google Play, and other digital services, ensuring travellers enjoy uninterrupted access to familiar services.
The ProvidusVerve Travel Card eliminates the hassle of sourcing naira or converting foreign currency on arrival. It enables instant, secure transactions, reduces reliance on cash, and supports compliance with the cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
It also mitigates the risks associated with carrying physical cash such as loss, theft, or fraud, offering a safe, regulation-aligned option for both online and in-person payments.
“The ProvidusVerve Travel Card is a timely solution for inbound travellers seeking reliability, security, and simplicity while navigating Nigeria.
“Together with Providus Bank, we have created a product that eliminates the friction traditionally associated with accessing local payments.
“Whether for tourism, business, or festive activities, this card ensures a smooth financial experience from the moment visitors land,” the Vice President for Issuing and Acquiring Management for Africa at Verve International, Mr Paul Ohakim, stated.
On his part, the Divisional Head for Product Management and Solution Delivery at Interswitch, Mr Ademola Adeniran, described the partnership as a reflection of “Verve’s commitment to designing products that respond to real user needs.”
“The ProvidusVerve Travel Card supports everyday experiences — from booking rides and hotels to shopping, streaming, and dining. It provides inbound travellers with a secure, compliant, digital-first way to experience Nigeria without financial barriers,” he added.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, has disclosed that the federal government may recover and sell the assets of Dana Air to refund passengers and travel agents whose funds remain trapped following the suspension of the airline’s operations.
The Minister disclosed this in Abuja on Tuesday at the Ministry’s fourth quarter stakeholders’ engagement to enhance governance for effective service delivery in aviation.
Speaking at the event themed “leveraging public feedback to drive excellence in aviation services, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) will be directed to probe why funds trapped by the airline are yet to be refunded.
He revealed that the authority suspended the operations of the airline as a matter of choice between safety and disaster.
“For Dana, the problem is that it was a choice between safety and disaster. So we didn’t take the commercial thing as priority. The priority was safety, and we all looked at the damning reports that we had met on the table.
“It was a decision of the NCAA to suspend them, but I pushed them to say, look, these are the reports we are seeing on the table about safety record, about lack of standards that put the lives of Nigerians at risk. If they continue flying, I don’t know whether most of us will be here. Many of us would have been victims of one of those flights. God forbid.”
According to him, “I have asked Najomo (NCAA director general) to dig deep to find out how those passengers and agents will be refunded. He has to dig deep on that.
“One solution will also be that if that same individual or those entities are trying to come back to aviation under any guise, whether to go and register a new AOC or use any business within the aviation sector, they have to go and settle their debts first.
“We should look at their assets. There are assets that are still available. Let them sell their assets. Let’s cannibalize their revenue and pay people. Let’s find a way to go after their assets and get money to pay Nigerians who are owed.
“NCAA should do that because they can’t get away with it.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said it has imposed a N5 million penalty on Qatar Airways for consumer protection violations.
The announcement was made on Wednesday by the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs & Consumer Protection, Mr Michael Achimugu, on X, adding that there may be other sanctions depending on how the airline treats other cases.
“Glad to announce that, today, the NCAA has sanctioned @qatarairways to the tune of five million naira being penalty for consumer protection-related infractions. In addition, the letters of investigation (LOI) written to the airline over other cases may lead to further sanctions if not treated satisfactorily,” Mr Achimugu wrote.
The fine followed an incident when a Nigerian passenger was accused by a Qatar Airways cabin crew member of sexual harassment during boarding in Lagos for a flight to the United States via Doha, Qatar.
The allegation was only reported in Doha, where the passenger was arrested, detained for 18 hours, fined, and compelled to sign a document written solely in Arabic.
Qatar Airways allegedly refused to continue his journey, forcing him to purchase another ticket at considerable financial and reputational cost.
The NCAA said it invited Qatar Airways’ country manager to a meeting over the incident, but he failed to attend, sending subordinates instead.
“I understand that some countries do not have advanced aviation consumer protection regulations like Nigeria does. In certain cases, some countries don’t even have any. This creates a situation where airlines operating out of those countries (mostly national carriers) act with disdain towards consumer protection enforcement in Nigeria.
“This is not a situation that we would accept here. It is against the law for ANY Airlines not to respond to the NCAA. It is against the law to provide false information to the NCAA. It is against the law to fail to comply with the provisions of Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023,” Mr Achimugu said in an earlier post.
In September, the NCAA accused Qatar Airways of mistreating Nigerian passengers and failing to comply with consumer protection regulations under Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023.
The regulator then threatened stiff penalties against the airline for repeatedly disregarding its directives.
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