Information and Communication Technologies as Management Tool for Tourism Development in Nigeria: Challenges and Prospects
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61841/6vvj0t52Keywords:
Communication, e-Tourism, ICTs, Integration, Tourism DevelopmentAbstract
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) has reshaped private and societal activities in general by turning the world into a global village. ICTs facilitatepotential tourists’ access to tourism products information from anywhere any time while tourism enterprises can equally reach the targeted customers across the globe with the aid of computers, web technologies etc. Almost every tourism products can be sold online without the consumer necessarily visiting the place before making any choice. Booking of flights and hotel reservations can be done online through e-mail, telephone calls and other internet services thereby eliminating inconveniences, waste of time and resources, etc. that characterise the analogue system. Consequently, ICTs play a major role in tourism, travel and hospitality industry. This study explores the challenges and prospects of its use as a management tool for tourism development, revenue generation, minimization of cost and reaching the customers in Nigeria. Primarily it seeks to identify its limitations in enhancing more accessibility, visibility of information, availability of variety of products and satisfaction in the Nigeria’s tourism industry with a view to explore possibility of their overcome. In pursuit of this goal, a survey of existing and accessible literature in secondary/archival sources is adopted while the data generated is analysed with the aid of content analysis.The results of the analysis reveal that poor availability, dissemination and maintenance of ICT facilities, high costs of ICT facilities, poor network coverage/connections, lack of ICT skills and limited integration of ICTs in tourism industry, and epileptic power supply are the major forces hindering the impact of ICTs on tourism industry development in Nigeria.This paper hereby recommends pro-ICTs development and integration policy in the tourism industry to ameliorate the observed hindrances.
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