By Damillola Adeyera
For years, guests, enthusiasts, and lovers of La Campagne Tropicana Beach & Forest Resort have asked the same question: Why the name La Campagne Tropicana? What inspired it? What story lies behind a name that has become known as the pioneer destination for African-themed hospitality?
For many who have taken a tour through the founder’s campsite of the resort, walked the sandy beaches, explored the green forest, and experienced the unique taste of African culture and luxury, these questions have always remained etched in their minds.
Have you ever wondered why and how Otunba Olawanle Akinboboye chose La Campagne Tropicana when he founded the resort?
In an exclusive interview with Atunda TV, Otunba Olawanle Akinboboye, the founder and builder of La Campagne Tropicana Beach & Forest Resort, finally provided the answer.
The no-holds-barred interview took place within the compound of the resort during one of his customary early morning inspection tour of the resort. This daily routine is one of the ways Otunba Akinboboye maintains the standard of African hospitality excellence, which the resort is known for. It was during this tour that this reporter asked him the question.
Sir, how did you come about the name La Campagne Tropicana for this beach.
His reply: “La Campagne” means “countryside” in the tropics. That was the idea of La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort at the time. It is woven around agro-ecotourism. So, I want people, whether they’re Chinese, French, or African, to be aware that they are coming to an agro-ecotourism environment. They are coming to the countryside. They are coming to experience the best of nature.
As Otunba gave this answer, he walked into the new conference hall of the resort where guests at the resort were set to have their breakfast. One after the other, he inspected the buffet, which had a variety of local and intercontinental meals like Akara and Pap, cereals, beans and corn, pancakes, baked beans and bread, amongst others.
Dressed in beach fashion, short, comfy sneakers, athletic top, and a jogging cap, which is a signature style for moments like this, he continued with the reply to my curious question.
“I left the United States of America in my early twenties. Having completed my educational pursuits at the time. When I came back to Nigeria, I made my way to Ikegun, an area on the edge of Lagos State. Everyone in my close and social circle thought the spirit of madness had taken over me. Let me tell you why.
Ikegun at that time had only one or two houses. In fact, I was more or less the second individual to make Ikegun my place of abode. I call it an abode because the only roof I had over my head was the camping tent, which I brought from America. I spent days in the forest taking in the breath of nature and immersing my feet in the sands of the beachfront. That was when I had an epiphany.
As a pan-African, one of the struggles I faced in America was adapting to Western culture. Returning, I immediately observed how, as a result of the impact of the activities of the British colonial masters, Africans were ditching their culture for that of their Western counterparts. I saw this as a problem that had the potential to erase our true African identity. Culture is part of what makes the DNA of humans, and if Africans are ditching their cultural identity, then we are invariably losing out on DNA. And because La Campagne is pan-African, we are going to be franchising it throughout Africa as a way of solving this problem.