Visit Ibadan-Fantastic Nigerian City

My journey to Nigeria from London, United Kingdom was uneventful, but until I touched down in Ibadan.

Ibadan, is a fantastic city, is very well known as the biggest city in West Africa, with its corrugated tinted roofs. It seems to me highly congested from the hill when you are coming in from the Lagos-Ibadan express road. Hey Ibadan, it’s been some time.

A tourist who loves hospitable people with a strong cultural attraction will like to travel to this destination, one of Africa’s finest more often. My role as a tourism specialist was to take an expression at the gloriousness of Ibadan after 35 years once more and to reminisce in the beautiful adventurous environment. Some of my friends in Ibadan will disagree with the number of years I have been away from the city as a child. But not a lot has altered. What is detectable is that Ibadan looks cleaner.

Am I going to discuss the attractions, oh yes? At that place was and still is a City in a City, the University of Ibadan. For academia, it will be worthwhile to pay a visit here. Fantastic environment from the gate through the separated dual carriage roads that carried to the Tower, lined with evergreen grasses and trees with highly decorative flowers. Queerly enough, everywhere is trimmed and evergreen. Nothing much has changed since my last entry. I recollect Queens Hall on the left of the road, Lumumba Hall, Azikiwe Hall and a host of others.

Right directly in front of us is the Chancellor and Registrars Office still painted in white with the Tower, standing majestically. Many scholars have occurred through this City in a City with its numerous student halls, conference halls and centres, theatres and mention art, theatre, a zoo, an enviable stadium with all its fixings.

As a tourist, it is very rare we are permitted to experience poverty in destinations, but as we approach Abadina Village, situated within the University of Ibadan, it became a life-altering case.  This is a small town that has provided for many Nigerians now serving expatriates abroad. The buildings of Abadina are now dilapidated, the streets full of potholes; Abadina School is in a sorry state of disrepair with windowless buildings and roofs caving in and not fit for a dwelling house. It was a sad sight to behold as a tourism specialist.

I must confess, many innovative ideas came to me on how I could help the community, giving them a principle of developing a regeneration program to alleviate the situation through tourism.  

I suffered a heavy heart while leaving the once fascinating village. How can we bring UI, as it is called, to its glorious years once again?

It is significant to emphasize that from the gate of the University, there was evidence of a wow factor, but I will notify all visitors not to be fooled by that. The University needs financial assistance to maintain Abadina village where all her workers reside. A task could be formulated here to produce community participation and growth which will bring the university to its once glorious standard.

My visit takes me to look at other attractions in Ibadan that will perk up the tourist experiences; Mapo Hall was the first town hall in the city designed during the colonial days; we likewise have the Bower Tower, located at Oak Are. It was raised by Captain Bower, who was then the governor of Ibadan during the colonial epoch. Seeing the tower enable me to watch the huge massive landscape of Ibadan; for those who would like some picnic with peace and quiet, Agodi Gardens is the best spot to see; the Place of the Olubadan is where tourists will observe all the traditional beauty of Ibadan. It will be pertinent if I did not mention Cultural Centre at Mokola and Dubge Market with its shopping experiences.

Ibadan has much potential as a tourism destination. Strategic planning and consultation involving research and development need to be put in place. Little or nothing has been researched in line with tourism potentialities. The benefit of tourism to Ibadan is about the city itself and how we can transform the existing resources to generate foreign revenue that could boost sustainable education, employment and infrastructural development with strategic planning in consultation with the community and public-private stakeholders.

Ibadan paves the way to know hospitable Nigeria. A gradual process will be developed to enlighten tourists in the way of life of Nigerian cities-communities and their hospitality and tourism.

Have fun while you are in IBADAN.......Hello World!!!!!