Interview With VisitAssist CEO (Pt2): “We Can Fast-Track Passport Renewals In Nigeria”
How do you think you’re filling the gap?
We started out with accommodation and transportation and shortly afterwards we started providing security.
Then people started making enquiries about passports.
Not sure if you’re aware but there was a time when there was a backlog at the Nigerian Immigration Service and people were waiting for months to get their passports renewed. A lot of people were even allowed to travel to Nigeria with expired passports
Definitely. I once travelled with an expired passport myself.
Ahh, there you go! Now, without a NIN….,
National Identification Number?
Yes, National Identification Number. Without a NIN, you couldn’t get a passport. So we started providing NIN services as well.
A majority of those who were allowed to travel with expired passports were allowed to travel on the condition that they would renew their passport while in Nigeria so they needed a very efficient service, which we were able to provide.
Wow! Interesting, so you were able to get their NINs sorted and get their passport renewed all during a trip to Nigeria?
Absolutely! What most people have realised is that it takes longer to renew your passport outside Nigeria. We can fast track passport renewals in Nigeria.
Interesting!
Yeah! Like I was saying, without a NIN no mobile phone so even people who didn’t need to renew their passport but needed a mobile phone line were making inquiries about our NIN services.
We can also help Nigerians who want to open a bank account in Nigeria acquire a Bank Verification Number (BVN).
It’s a total package you offer
You could say so
What kind of challenges have you faced?
Do you have all day for me to answer that question?
I’m the interviewer here, not you!
Laughter
Logistics! People not making their appointments on time due to traffic. We had a client who once missed a flight back to the UK because she was held up in traffic.
Oh no!
Of course, she blamed our driver for not taking the faster route. We had to make the arrangements to change her flight and gave her accommodation for the night. Fortunately, she was able to fly out the next day.
Bad roads cause unnecessary damage to our vehicles.
There’s this other issue with time. Some people visiting Nigeria would only be around for a week and would expect us to produce a passport within that period. We can fast track passport applications but not within five-working days. As you know, there are only five working days in one Calendar week.
So, yeah, we’d like to boast about our swift and efficient service but we cannot guarantee that we’d be able to renew your passport for you while you’re in Nigeria if you’re only going to be in town for 7 days.
What has impressed you most:
Ah, a lot actually and that has kept me going. To begin with, I’ve got the most loyal and dedicated staff. They are trustworthy enough for me to leave in charge of the business while I’m here in the UK.
Also, you cannot overemphasise hospitality in Nigeria. Nigerians are very hospitable and that is part of our culture. We do our checks properly before recommending facilities to clients, yet we are still very impressed with the professionalism displayed by providers of these services.
Humour and the Nigerian society are like five and six. The Nigerian sense of humour cannot be matched. The way we still find joy and laughter amid all that is going on in the country still baffles me.
Don’t get me started on the food. If there’s something I miss about Nigeria, it’s the food.
Especially street food
Told you not to get me started…, (Laughs) Amala with abula and ogunfe meat, Pounded yam with efo-riro and orisisi, suya and masa….
We could talk about Nigerian food all day
We could
What have been people’s reactions?
Oh, we’ve got great reviews on TrustPilot. I can provide the link for Urnaija readers
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/visitassist.com.ng
We’d love that!
Now, what are your plans for the future:
We want to expand our service to the Tourism package. We started out catering for Nigerians returning home but our next plan will include organising tourism trips to Nigeria for Non-Nigerians.
Wow, that’s a grand plan but as you know, tourism could be a challenging business In Nigeria.
Yes, that could be true but remember that most of our services are already confronting the challenges. For instance, security is always cited as a major challenge facing the tourism industry but we already have that covered.
When it comes to electricity, we know places in Nigeria where the light is really steady.
Also, we now know how to ferry people to interesting tourist attractions with minimal stress.
Wow, I can see that you’ve done your research.
Research is always ongoing because of new development and infrastructures which keep popping up.