Nigeria-China food festival: NIHOTOUR promotes culinary heritage, tourism opportunities

By Ezurike Ugochukwu

The National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), in collaboration with the China Cultural Centre in Nigeria, has used the 2026 Nigeria-China Food Festival to deepen cultural exchange and promote the role of culinary heritage in tourism development.

The festival, held on August 27 at the China Cultural Centre in Abuja, brought together more than 200 participants, including hospitality professionals, chefs, tourism operators, government officials, diplomats, entrepreneurs and cultural practitioners from Nigeria and China.

With the theme, “From Farm to Feast,” the event formed part of activities marking the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Nigeria and China.

The festival offered guests an opportunity to experience the culinary traditions of both countries, with 14 Chinese dishes representing seven regions of China and 12 Nigerian dishes showcasing culinary traditions from the country’s six geopolitical zones.

Beyond the food displays, the event highlighted the people, skills and businesses that form the food and hospitality value chain—from farmers and food producers to processors, chefs, restaurateurs and hospitality professionals.

For NIHOTOUR, the initiative provided an avenue to demonstrate how Nigeria’s rich culinary diversity could be developed into a stronger tourism product while creating opportunities for skills development, entrepreneurship and employment.

Speaking at the event, the Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of NIHOTOUR, Aare Abisoye Fagade, reaffirmed the Institute’s commitment to developing the human capital required to drive the hospitality and tourism industry.

He said partnerships that expose Nigerian professionals and young people to international culinary practices would contribute to raising standards, encouraging enterprise and strengthening the country’s tourism offering.

The theme, “From Farm to Feast,” according to the organisers, was also designed to draw attention to the extensive chain of activities behind every meal and the economic opportunities embedded in the food and hospitality sector.

The Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Nigeria, Mr. Zhou Hongyou, described food as an effective means of promoting mutual understanding and strengthening people-to-people relations.

He noted that cultural exchanges provide an opportunity for Nigerians and Chinese to better understand each other’s traditions while building relationships beyond formal diplomatic engagements.

Also present was the Cultural Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy and Director of the China Cultural Centre in Nigeria, Mr. Yang Jianxing, whose participation underscored the cultural dimension of the longstanding bilateral relationship.

Nigeria and China established diplomatic relations in 1971, and their engagement has since expanded beyond government-to-government relations into trade, infrastructure, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges.

Against this background, the food festival provided a less formal but significant platform for deepening mutual understanding while showcasing the cultural diversity of both nations.

For Nigeria, the event also reinforced the growing recognition of gastronomy as an important component of tourism. The country’s six geopolitical zones possess distinctive cuisines, ingredients, cooking traditions and food-related cultural practices that can be packaged into tourism experiences for domestic and international visitors.

NIHOTOUR said it would continue to leverage partnerships and professional training initiatives to promote Nigeria’s hospitality and tourism assets, strengthen culinary skills and support entrepreneurs across the tourism value chain.

The Institute said events such as the Nigeria-China Food Festival demonstrated how culture, food and tourism could be deployed not only to celebrate diversity but also to create economic opportunities and strengthen international relationships.