The Institute of Hospitality (IoH) of the United Kingdom has inaugurated its Nigerian chapter.

The newly inaugurated Nigerian chapter of the Institute of Hospitality (IoH) of the United Kingdom has promised to impact positively on the hospitality industry in the country.

Speaking on the institute, the IoH Nigeria chapter chairman, Mr. Olatunde Oluloye, said the body will champion professionalism and the training of industry personnel, who will be abreast of what the goings-on in the industry internationally.

Mr. Olatunde Oluloye said the body was not an association but ‘an institute in which knowledge advancement will be passed through the institute to the industry.’

He said the institute had done so much worldwide to promote professionalism, adding that, that was what the institute intended to achieve in the country. Oluloye said IoH in Nigeria would help in professionalising and advancing education in the field. He said they would also bring the vast resources of the IoH of the United Kingdom in terms of knowledge to Nigeria.

To achieve these objectives, IoH, he said, had lined up programmes that would not only sensitise both the public and private sectors, but also birng IoH experts from abroad for the running of the industry while not neglecting the local content. He said: ‘’We will organise seminars and trainings. The institute is poised to work for the growth of the hospitality industry.

The Institute of Hospitality, renamed on 2 April 2007, was previously known as the Hotel & Catering International Management Association (HCIMA). It represents professional managers in the hospitality, leisure and tourism industries and has a worldwide membership with members represented in all sectors of the industry including hotels, contract catering, restaurants, pubs and clubs, as well as leisure outlets, theme parks and sports venues.

The Institute of Hospitality is managed as an educational charity, and exists to benefit its members in their careers and professional development, as well as improve industry sector standards. The primary purpose of the institute is to promote the highest professional standards of management and education in the international hospitality, leisure and tourism industries.