Senior officials of the Lagos State government have approved the reopening of the Lekki Conservation Centre (LCC) facilities at the 78 hectares forest reserve and wetland in Lekki Peninsula to improve ecotourism.
LCC management secured approval from the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture and State’s Safety Commission after their assessment of the level of maintenance and repair works after last month’s closure due to safety concerns. LCC is owned and managed by Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), one of the foremost environmental and sustainability groups in the country.
The Guardian gathered that over the last three weeks, LCC received different high-level delegations from different arms and agencies of the state government on inspection tours of the facilities. It received the Special Assistant to the Governor on Tourism, Idris Aregbe; Director General, State’s Safety Commission, Mr Lanre Mojola; Deputy Director, Tourism, Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture, Mr Aminu Omosun, as well as other officials.
The delegations were received and conducted on a three-hour tour of the facility by NCF Director General, Dr Joseph Onoja, in the company of other senior management staff of the foundation. The inspection and assessment tour started from the LCC gate, through the car park, boardwalk, 401metre long-canopy walkway (the longest canopy walkway in Africa and second longest in the world), to the family park, tree house, and boardroom.
Aregbe, while addressing the NCF/LCC team, expressed pleasure at the level of maintenance culture, the prompt and swift response to safety issues, and having the canopy walkway accident-free for nine years. He, however, highlighted some new safety priority areas that require repairs, reinforcement and charged NCF to properly fix them before the centre is reopened.
Also, a delegation of the House of Assembly, led by Hon. Bonu Solomon, Chairman, House Committee on Tourism, Arts & Culture paid a working visit to further assess the ongoing maintenance efforts.
He was accompanied by the Chairman, House Committee on Physical Planning, Hon Sylvester Ogunkelu; Chairman, House Committee on Home Affairs, Hon Jubril Abdulkareem; Chairman, House Committee on Sustainable Development Goals, Hon Gbolahan Ogunleye and Hon Desmond Elliot, representing Surulere Constituency 1.
They were also received by Onoja, Director of Business Development and Communications, Mr Uchenna Achunine and LCC Project Manager, Ms. Bose Kosemani. The lawmakers were conducted on a tour of the facilities, especially the boardwalk and the canopy walkway to inspect and assess the repair works. Chairman of the House Committee on Tourism, Arts, and Culture expressed satisfaction with the tour.
Onoja said LCC plays host to visitors, and the facility is not immune from expected wear and tear, adding that NCF has maintained an accident-free reputation on Africa’s longest canopy walk since the official opening of the facility in 2015 due to the diligence of technicians and maintenance staff, as well as other relevant stakeholders.
