General News
Technology Disrupting Global, Local Travel Industry
By Gbemisola Aruwayo-Obe
Nigerians from all walks of life love to travel. Like folks elsewhere, they feel deeply emotional about travelling. Although they may chit-chat about banking, shopping and similar experiences, discussions about their favorite airlines, miles, discounts, upgrades and boarding privileges also strike a deep cord with them. Regardless of social status, we all seem to be united by two things: our aspirational lifestyle and our individual and collective urge for excellent service delivery. Embracing digital innovation (technology) would help fast track the attainment of these social and economic realities.
While travelers around the world may differ in their hospitality tastes and preferences, the Internet has helped to flatten the world. Commercialization of the Internet has also introduced digital innovation into the travel and tourism industries, bringing with it a raft of new products, services and experiences. The digital influence is daily transforming the entire value chain of the hospitality sector, and this digital disruption is being embraced by travelers and operators alike. Take online checking in and self-service terminals at airports, for instance.
What about software which allows travelers to select destinations, flights and airlines, hotels, car hire companies and concierge services from the comfort of their laptops or hand-held devices? 20 years, you would have needed to visit or place a phone call to an airline or travel agent to access these sorts of services.
In hospitality establishments across the country and even around Africa, innovative technology is gradually bringing disruption to business models and customer expectations. Digital innovation is creating new challenges and opportunities for the travel industry. As with other industries, travel services customers have grown accustomed to individualized arrangements.
Whilst service quality levels may not be optimal in the fast-developing economies of the world, travelers in these regions are also not shy of demanding more comprehensive and consistent experiences and are becoming less tolerant of both inconsistency and imposition. Travel customers now expect streamlined processes, convenient self-service options and one-of-a-kind experiences. They are willing to quickly shift buying behaviors and preferences if they do not get what they are seeking.
This is the way it should be. However, this is not always how things have been over the last 20 years or so for members of the public who need to patronize airlines, hotels, transportation providers and other service providers in the business or leisure travel value chain. While hospitality industry analysts have called for increased public sector investments in the sector and in some cases, sectoral reforms which will galvanize domestic and foreign direct investments, there is also the need to realize that the entire hospitality landscape is undergoing disruption, as new entrants continue to leapfrog established travel businesses by applying digital technologies in innovative ways, whether it’s businesses that rent private homes to strangers or provide one-way car services.
Executives in the industry recognize the ongoing disruption and the impact of digital innovation on their industry. In 2016, an IBM Institute for Business Value’s Global Ecosystem Survey, conducted in collaboration with the Economist Intelligence Unit, consulted the opinions of more than 2,000 cross-industry leaders. Study findings include:
63 percent of the surveyed travel industry executives report that traditional value chains are being replaced with new value models.
Half of the surveyed travel industry executives indicate that boundaries between their industry and others are blurring.
57 percent of surveyed travel industry executives say that competition from new and unexpected sources is beginning to impact their businesses.
According to another report from the IBM Institute for Business Value, the global travel industry can sustain its momentum by meeting and hopefully, exceeding travelers’ personal expectations by embracing the philosophy of a Digital Reinvention.™ There is a three-step process, which includes:
1) Digitization improves efficiency by applying technology to individual resources or processes. Within the context of travel, digitization involves setting up digital systems that support processes such as online ticketing, but has evolved into online services where customers book directly with providers rather than through traditional travel agents.
2) Digital transformation involves the integration of digital functions or processes across an organization. By combining a set of systems and processes, digitally transformed travel businesses can offer their customers individualized experiences. An example of increasing importance is the ability of travel providers to combine data collected through travel booking sites, as well as customers’ personal social media channels, to deliver highly customized vacations.
3) Digital Reinvention of travel goes even further. Digitally reinvented travel involves a fundamental re-imagining of the way an organization operates and engages with customers and other stakeholders. Digital Reinvention at its most fundamental puts the customer first in all of the organization’s dealings to deliver travel experiences that are personalized for individual customers.
Digital Reinvention combines multiple digital technologies, including cloud, blockchain, mobile and the Internet of Things (IoT), to transform customer and partner relationships and to create new business ecosystems. Often, the most successful digitally reinvented businesses establish a platform of engagement for their customers and partners.
These are the steps, the benchmarks if you like, that many Africa-based travel industry operators need to adopt to take their game to the next level. Digital disruption is a reality of the global travel industry. The earlier and faster we embrace digital disruption locally, the more efficient our travel and hospitality systems will be.
General News
Nigeria Recovers $52.88m in Assets Linked to Former Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke
Federal government has received $52.88m recovered Galactica assets linked to a former Minister of Petroleum Diezani Alison-Madueke from the USA.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi disclosed this at the formal signing ceremony of the asset agreement between Nigeria and the United States of America in Abuja on Friday, January 10.
While speaking at the ceremony, Fagbemi explained that $50m of the recovered assets will be deployed through the World Bank to the development of the rural electrification project and the remaining $2m will be deployed to the International Institute of Justice to expand the Justice system and also counter corruption.
Speaking further, Fagbemi noted that the asset return marks a milestone in the ongoing collaboration between Nigeria and the United States in combating corruption and upholding the rule of law
He said the event is also a significant effort by President Bola Tinubu to address the issue of corruption.
Meanwhile, in his remarks, the United States Ambassador to Nigeria Richard Mills called for the monitoring and effectively utilizing the recovered assets by the Ministry of Justice to benefit Nigerians.
Diezani served as Minister under the Goodluck Jonathan administration.
TikTok has officially announced plans to cease its operations in the United States by January 19, 2025.
“Absent such relief, the Act will take effect on January 19, 2025,” TikTok said in a Dec. 9 legal filing. “That would shut down TikTok—one of the Nation’s most popular speech platforms for its more than 170 million domestic monthly users on the eve of a presidential inauguration.”
Last year, President Joe Biden signed into law, a legislation to remove TikTok from U.S. app stores and prohibit internet providers across the nation from allowing access to the platform if ByteDance cannot sell to an American company by Jan. 19.
The legislation was put in place amid concerns of China possibly using TikTok to spy on U.S. residents.
In response, TikTok filed an emergency motion for an injunction to stop the ban from taking effect, arguing that it violates the First Amendment and will generate “substantial losses,” per legal documents.
The Supreme Court is slated to hear oral arguments on Jan. 10 over whether or not the law should be upheld.
Meanwhile, several entrepreneurs have launched a bid to purchase TikTok, including Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary.
“This isn’t just about buying TikTok’s U.S. assets,” he wrote in a Jan. 6 message on X, formerly Twitter. “It’s about something much bigger: protecting the privacy of 170 million American users.”
O’Leary continued, “It’s about empowering creators and small businesses. And it’s about building a platform that prioritizes PEOPLE over algorithms. TikTok has immense potential, not just as a tool for creators but as a driver of meaningful economic and social impact.”
However, O’Leary said he’ll likely need an assist from President-elect Donald Trump, who will be sworn into office on Jan. 20.
“Trump will be who we have to work with to close the deal in the months ahead,” he explained during a Jan. 6 appearance on Fox News’ The Story with Martha MacCallum, per The Wrap. “So, I wanted to let him know—as well as others in his cabinet—that we’re doing this, and we’re going to need their help.”
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