Kwara State has a large number of tourist sites that can be further developed by investors

Areas of extreme natural beauty combined with fascinating historical sites and rich cultural traditions give Kwara State the potential to be a world-class tourist destination. The current administration is determined to use tourism as a vehicle to create employment and drive development into the rural areas of the state. Years of military rule and an over-dependence on the oil sector have left Nigeria's tourism sector relatively undeveloped. With democracy now firmly established and a genuine commitment to diversify the economy, the tourism industry looks set to grow at a rapid pace.

The state government wants to attract both foreign and Nigerian tourists to its numerous sites and cultural events. There is a growing trend of Nigerians holidaying within their own country and Kwara State is positioning itself to take advantage of this. As the state becomes more prominent as a business destination, the tourism industry will also benefit from an increase in visitors.

Good transport infrastructure means that visitors have no difficulty in travelling to Kwara State. Ilorin International Airport currently has flights to and from Abuja and Lagos daily from Monday to Friday. The state's central location also makes travelling by road a viable option. In order to stimulate investment in the tourism sector, the state government has begun to improve infrastructure around the proposed tourist sites.

Major tourist sites and opportunities
Owu Fall
This is one of the highest and most spectacular waterfalls in West Africa and is sometimes referred to as a ‘Wonder in the Wilderness’. A perennial waterfall, it cascades from a height of around 120 metres to form a pool of ice-cold water at its base. The site has a beautiful landscape and offers visitors a refreshing atmosphere. The waterfall is capable of generating huge revenue from local and foreign tourists. It is located at Owa Kajola in Ifelodun Local Government Area.

Benefits of Owu Waterfall
The benefits derivable from the development and promotion of the Owu Waterfall are enormous:  

 

• The waterfall is capable of generating huge revenue for both the state and the federal governments through visits from local and foreign tourists to the site throughout the year.
• The development of the site would promote Kwara State in national and international tourism markets, thereby enhancing the image of the state and Nigeria.
• It would further encourage the development of infrastructural facilities within the communities at or near the site, e.g. roads, electricity, water and communication systems.
• The mineral resources within the area, previously mined illegally, would be opened to the world and would pave the way for an increase in revenue generation.
• It would create employment opportunities for the local community and Kwara State.

Development required at Owu Waterfall

A wide range of investment opportunities exist whereby private partners can contribute to the further development of the site. The development required in order to turn Owu Falls into a standard holiday resort is as follows:

• Construction of roads from Oke Onigbin via Isanlu-lsin to Owa Kajola and the waterfall (33km)
• Construction of alternative roads from Sabaja-lsin to Owa Onire to the site (14km)
• Construction of an international hotel
• Restaurant and snack bar
• Swimming pool
• Botanical garden/mini zoo
• Recreation park
• Wildlife park
• Conference hall
• Staff quarters
• Provision of utility vehicles and package tour vehicles

Imoleboja Rock Shelter

The Imoleboja Rock Shelter is a massive granite rock with numerous chambers, including a main hall, which can accommodate up to 100 visitors at a time. The imposing granite form is located in Odo-Owa in the Oke-Ero Local Government Area and is a very popular picnic spot. A part of the rock shelter has an inner slab that forms a staircase which leads to an upper floor where several other compartments are found. 'Imoleboja' means 'the spirit has built a house', and the structure has played various roles in the cultural life of the people, from providing shelter during inter-tribal wars to serving as a traditional hideout for maidens who engaged in pre-marital relations and became pregnant.

Benefits of Imoleboja Rock Shelter  

• The developed site would become a composite cultural tourism centre encompassing activities such as bead and soap stone production, arts and craft workshops, etc. 
• It would further increase the revenue of the state. 
• It would bring direct development to the local community and other multiplier effects of tourism.
• It would also transform the whole area by attracting faster development of infrastructural facilities as well as create job opportunities.

Development required at Imoleboja Rock Shelter

Investors are invited to develop the Imoleboja Rock Shelter into a foremost tourist attraction by establishing a recreation park and cultural centre. The site is located at Odo-Owa, about a 90km drive from Ilorin. The rock shelter requires the following:

• Improvement of about 3km of the road from Odo-Owa Iloffa to the site.
• The site needs to be cleared and fenced with a gate put in place
• Bar, restaurant or canteen
• Construction of 20 chalets for tourist accommodation
• Landscaping of surroundings
• Provision of infrastructure

Patigi Regatta Festival

The Patigi Regatta Festival is a glamorous cultural event prominent among the Nupe communities of Kwara, Niger and Kogi States. It features fishing, swimming competitions and canoe paddling. This festival has the potential for attracting both domestic and international tourists to the state. 
  With a view to making the festival an annual event, the Kwara State Government some years ago constructed a motel, an executive lodge and VIP chalets some distance away from the river where the Regatta Festival is staged.

Benefits of the Patigi Regatta Festival

With the revival of the celebration of the Patigi Regatta Festival as an annual event, the state is expected to reap the following benefits: 

• The socio-cultural, economic and political potential of the festival will be exposed to the whole world, encouraging investors and interested parties to participate.
• Sustaining historical antecedents.
• It offers unique features that qualify the regatta as an international regatta festival.
• It will bring in tourists from within and outside the country as has been the case with the Arungungu Festival and Osun Osogbo Festival in other states.
• It will generate both local and foreign currencies for the state government.
• It will enhance economic activities within the host community.
• It will improve the standard of living.
• It has the potential to encourage the development of river transportation.

Development required for the Patigi

Regatta Festival

The development required for this festival is as follows:

• Renovation of existing pavilion
• Upgrade of chalets and motel to international standard
• Construction of infrastructural facilities: exhibition stand, press galleries and sheds
• Acquisition of boats and canoes
• Provision of package tour vehicles
• Provision of an international communication system
• Provision of electricity and potable water supply
• Rehabilitation of access roads to the Festival Village

Asa Inland Beach Resort

On a newly identified expanse of land near the Dam along Asa River in the state capital of Ilorin, the possibility of developing a beach resort exists. The beautiful scenery and the cool climate make the area suitable for recreation and social activities.

Benefits of Asa Inland Beach Resort

• Increased revenue generation.
• It will create jobs for the citizens of Kwara State.
• Creation of a good atmosphere for relaxation.
• New venue for tourists and potential investors to visit.
• Development required
• Construction of recreation park
• Construction of administrative and security blocks and toilet facilities
• Provision of infrastructure: electricity, water supply and communications
• Police post

Other sites and opportunities

Island resort

An opportunity exists to transform Fangel lsland and the bank of River Niger into an inland beach resort. The site is situated close to the historic city of Jebba. Potential facilities include a world-class hotel, a presidential resort, conference centre and a boat resort.

Jebba

Jebba could be described as a museum city par excellence as it possesses a number of historical sites and relics. These include the Mungo Park cenotaph and the wreckage of Park's ship on which he explored the course of the River Niger. Other attractions are the Jebba bridges which remain a symbol of one of the greatest engineering achievements in Nigeria, and the Ahoyaya Waterfall.

Sheikh Alimi Mosque in Kuho

Sheikh Alimi was the progenitor of the Fulani dynasty in what is today known as the Ilorin Emirate. It is believed he would have made Kuho his permanent base if any of the seven wells which he and his followers dug around the site has produced water. The site of the mosque has since become a great centre for Islamic activities where people gather for religious tourism.

Esie Museum

Esie Museum, situated in the town of Esie, was established in 1945 and features stone figures discovered in 1775. There are fascinating stories surrounding the figures, one which is the belief that the statuettes were actually human beings turned into stone through supernatural spells.

Other sites

Other important sites in Kwara State include the Palace of Oloffa of Offa, the Dadda pottery workshop, Ningurume fish pond, Adin & Black Soap Industry, Watana Rock and the Kainji Lake National Park. The cultural scenery is further enriched by religious and traditional festivals such as the Awon Mass Wedding Festival, the Moremi Festival and the Epa Festival, among others. 

Investment Opportunities in Tourism
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Asa Dam Conference Centre and Resort

A visionary plan aims to create new multiple-purpose development at Kwara State’s Asa Dam

The Asa Dam Conference Centre and Resort is an exciting multi-purpose development that provides a unique mix of hotel and private accommodation with plentiful commercial and retail opportunities. Conference facilities, fitness centres, shopping malls and a golf course round-off an innovative new approach to integrated property development.

Central to the visionary plan is the elegant pedestrian bridge, vaulting over the expanse of Asa Dam Reservoir and linking the two sides of the project. The western side is mostly devoted to the public components (conference halls, shops and offices), while the eastern side contains the more private leisure and accommodation components.

Great care has been taken to keep the environment as natural as possible, with grass pathways and waterways linking various parts of the leisure and accommodation zone.
At the western edge of the bridge is the centrepiece of the public part of the plan, the hotel and conference centre. With 37 suites; 406 guest rooms and a total space of 40 000 square metres, the centre will also contain a modern conference facility (7 000 square metre), a health spa and fitness centre, a swimming pool, a roof garden and four restaurants.

The smaller family hotel will be located nearby, adjacent to a waterside boardwalk and a retail section near the water. Altogether, the shopping mall, including a food court and amusement park, will offer 34 000 square metres of lettable space. Adding to the product mix is 40 000 square metres of office space available in the commercial zone. A marina, sports fields and an amusement park are also envisaged for this section.

On the eastern edge of the bridge, a restaurant-topped tower greets the visitor to the private or leisure part of the resort. On this side of the water are found a resort hotel, a top-flight golf club and chalets for hire. But this is also where long-term residents can buy villas, with a top school on site to support their lifestyle choice. The school will be accredited with an appropriate accreditation institution in the United Kingdom.

Potential residents and investors can choose from a variety of luxury accommodation units:

• 30 two-bedroom resort hotel chalet units (248 square metres).
• 72 three-bedroom villas (330 square metres)
• 68 four-bedroom villas (350 square metre

The three- and four-bedroomed units have lap pools, a spa, a rooftop garden and servants' quarters.