By Onyekachi Victoria Philip
For Otunba Wanle Akinboboye, founder of La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort, tourism goes beyond creating beautiful destinations. It is a platform capable of bringing Africans and lovers of Africa in the diaspora together, creating opportunities for collaboration, investment, cultural exchange and the development of destinations across the continent.
Through initiatives such as IPADA Initiatives and Motherland Beckons, Akinboboye has continued to champion a movement where Africans at home and abroad can come together, promote one another’s destinations and contribute to the development of tourism across Africa.
The vision is simple but far-reaching which is to build tourism destinations that can attract visitors from within Africa and beyond, while creating opportunities for investors, governments, communities and tourism developers to participate in the growth of the industry.
From Ikegun To A Tourism Destination
One of the clearest examples of the impact of this vision can be seen in Ikegun, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos.
The area was once a developing location that attracted relatively little attention from tourists. The emergence of La Campagne Tropicana transformed the narrative, introducing a destination that combined Africa’s natural environment, culture, hospitality and tourism into a single experience.
Over time, the resort began attracting visitors from different parts of Nigeria and internationally, placing Ikegun on the tourism conversation.
Events such as the Asuu Carnival and IPADA celebrations have become part of the broader movement to showcase Nigeria, encourage cultural interaction and create visibility for destinations that could otherwise remain unknown to the outside world.
The larger objective is not simply to bring tourists into Nigeria, but to create an environment where tourism can encourage investment and make destinations attractive to people who may eventually want to establish businesses, develop properties or partner with local communities.
Governors Turning To Tourism
Across Nigeria, state governments are increasingly recognising tourism as an avenue for economic development, destination branding and investment.
Taraba State is one of the states where the call for tourism development has received significant attention.
Under Governor Agbu Kefas, the state has opened its doors to tourism development, with the administration showing interest in partnerships capable of turning Taraba’s natural and cultural assets into internationally recognised destinations.
For Akinboboye, Taraba provides a particularly strong example of what can happen when government and private tourism developers work together.
La Campagne Tropicana’s activities in the state have extended to the development of tourism destinations designed around Taraba’s distinctive landscape, agriculture, culture and natural attractions.
Among the locations is the La Campagne Tropicana Lake Resort Camp Site in Ibi, positioned around the area associated with the annual Nwonyo Fishing Festival.
The development adds a new tourism dimension to a location already known for its fishing festival and creates the possibility of visitors experiencing Taraba beyond the traditional event period.
Zango Kombi And The New Face Of Agro-Tourism
Another significant point is Zango Kombi, where La Campagne Tropicana is developing an agro-tourism destination built around farming, hospitality, nature and African culture.
The location’s proximity to Jalingo Airport further strengthens its potential as an accessible tourism destination, while its farmlands and natural environment provide the foundation for an experience that goes beyond conventional hospitality.
Here, tourism is connected to agriculture and culture, creating an experience where visitors can encounter the land, understand local production and experience the lifestyle of the people while enjoying hospitality.
Taking Tourism Beyond Taraba
The movement is not restricted to Lagos and Taraba.
In Ekiti State, La Campagne Tropicana is also advancing plans around a waterfall tourism destination, opening another chapter in the company’s effort to identify and develop natural attractions across Nigeria.
The idea is to ensure that destinations are not concentrated in only a few popular tourism locations, but that states with natural landscapes, waterfalls, hills, forests, rivers, farmlands and cultural heritage can also become part of Nigeria’s tourism map.
This is where IPADA Initiatives and Motherland Beckons become particularly significant.
Their tourism conversations have created a platform through which destinations in Lagos, Ondo, Ekiti and Taraba, alongside potential locations in states such as Nasarawa, can be discussed, promoted and connected to a wider African tourism vision.
The concept extends beyond competition between states.
Instead, destinations are encouraged to promote one another, visitors are encouraged to explore different parts of Africa, and investors can identify opportunities across several tourism corridors.
A Pan-African Tourism Vision
The vision ultimately extends beyond Nigeria.
La Campagne Tropicana is also pursuing the establishment of a standard tourism resort in Ethiopia, following engagement and approval from the Ethiopian government.
The development represents another step in Akinboboye’s ambition to take the tourism model beyond Nigeria and establish destinations across Africa and, eventually, other parts of the world.
This makes the IPADA movement bigger than individual resorts or tourism events.
It represents an attempt to create a network where African countries can showcase their destinations, share opportunities, welcome visitors from one another, attract investment and celebrate their cultures collectively.
From Lagos to Taraba, Ondo to Ekiti, and potentially Nasarawa and other Nigerian states, the movement is gradually building a conversation around what Africa can become when its tourism assets are deliberately developed and promoted.
For Akinboboye, the ultimate destination is not simply a resort.
It is an Africa where tourism becomes a bridge between the continent and its diaspora; where natural attractions become economic opportunities; where governments see tourism as a serious development tool; and where Africans can travel across their own continent to discover, invest in and celebrate one another.
Through La Campagne Tropicana, IPADA Initiatives and Motherland Beckons, that vision is steadily moving from an idea into a wider tourism movement, one destination at a time.
