MY MAGAZINE
READ ALL ARTICLES HERE
MY TRAVEL PLANACCOMMODATIONtrips & activitiesevents

ITTOG, Institute of Travel and Tourism of The Gambia

My Magazine 2022/04
1 min
In our March issue of My Magazine, we look at the Tourism Institute that offers professional courses in various areas of the industry, backed with practical experience that cannot be obtained in any other learning centre currently within The Gambia.

Brief background

The Institute of Travel and Tourism of The Gambia brings together students from different backgrounds into a challenging educational environment that provides them with skills to excel in their careers in tourism globally. 

This institute specializes in hands-on work and practical training in all tourism industry sectors. 

The school has several links with other Institutes of learning overseas, including Central Nottingham College, which serves as its main partner and sponsor. 

They host several University and College student groups on professional exchange programs centred on project assignments on various themes relating to Responsible and Sustainable Tourism. The institute is linked with the International Center for Responsible Tourism and, as a result, promotes the teaching of Responsible Tourism as a core activity.

 

History of the institute

The ITTOG was founded in 2008 through a link with South Nottingham College (now Central College Nottingham). It eventually got linked to Leeds Beckett University UK in 2010. The institute aimed to fill the market gap where the Gambia Hotel School could not provide skills for hotel employees in wider tourism courses to better guarantee them self-employment.

 

Pioneers of the institute

The pioneers of the tourism institute were the two directors, Dr Adama Bah and Mr Sheikh Tejan Nyang. They started the institute with Ms Helen Wilcockson, who established a link with the then South Nottingham college. 

Wilcockson played a leading role in the establishment and enabled some students to be offered scholarships to Nottingham college, who later became the first batch of teachers in the institute. It also got linked to Leeds Beckett University by Ms Lucy McCombes in 2010, which helped some of its teachers gain their MSc in Responsible Tourism Management through a commonwealth scholarship.

Mr Adama Bah

 

Goals for the establishment of the institute

According to Mr Bah, when the institute was first established, the only institute for the tourism industry in the country was the Gambia Hotel School, which was only introducing hotel and restaurant skills, which, he stressed, are not the only components of the hospitality industry. It is a subset of the tourism industry, so there was a need for this type of institute to complement the other institution to supply the much need human resources for the tourism industry. Mr Bah and others made further efforts to form the Association of Small Scale Enterprises in Tourism (ASSET) to train small business owners, like the craft markets, fruit and juice vendors, tourist taxi drivers, guides and also local tourism communities to make them involved and be more successful through learning support by increasing skills and employment.

 

Some of the courses offered at the institute

The institute specializes in hands-on training for students in travel and tourism, mainly in the following areas: travel agency, tour operations, tour guiding, ground operations, events management, entrepreneurship and business skills development. It also emphasizes responsible and sustainable tourism, community-based tourism, and general tourism business management. 

 

The general impact of the institute on the tourism industry of the Gambia

According to Mr Bah, regarding data collected by the institute, they have trained over 2000 professionals in various hospitality industry sectors. 75% of them are employed or self-employed, and 15% travelled abroad for further studies or work. According to Mr Bah, these statistics concern those who went through full-time courses with the institute.

ITTOG: Institute of Travel and Tourism of The Gambia

The Institute of Travel and Tourism of The Gambia brings together students from different backgrounds into a challenging educational environment that ...
Contact Details

Did you enjoy this article? Share it with friends >>>

Vivid Heritage
How to deal with bumsters in The Gambia
Subscribe To Our Magazine
No spam, notifications only about new issues.
Subscription Form za Mailerlite - landing
Subscribe To Our Magazine
No spam, notifications only about new issues.
Subscription Form za Mailerlite - landing

Other articles

The best place to get COVID stuck
It is the 16th of October 2019, I wake up full of excitement and jump out of bed. After years of dreaming and a few months of preparation I am ready t...
Vivid Heritage
Gambians have always been firmly attached to their vivid heritage, and it is well-manifested in their colourful ensembles that are finessed to perfect...
Interview with Mr Mehdi Bensouda
We meet so many interesting people while exploring the tourist industry and the people deeply involved in it. Our list of individuals that we want to ...
Propaganda
Seen from afar, a striking white shell hides and, at the same time, reveals a new acquisition on one of the most hospitable streets of Fajara. Two ver...
JOBS
© MyGambia 2024
Developed by Marklab

My Gambia Team

Typically replies within 30 minutes

We will be back soon.

Hey there 👋
We are here to help. What can I do for you?
Start Chat with us
chat