The Governor of Ekiti State
H. E. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji’
is the one who ordered that
One of the best Medical Complex in the world – Afe Babalola University Multisystem Hospital Ado Ekiti should be taken to the Hospitality market and sold
Acting according to the directive and instruction if His Excellency , Barrister Wale Ojo-Lanre, Director General,Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development ,led Barrister Soji Awe GM, Peculiar Ikiran SA, Olanrewaju Adewunmi ,DFA and others including,Kehinde Ajayi , Bolaji Aina and Bolarinwa Oselusi to Lagos for the global merchandizing of this great heath and medical institution.
At the bustling halls of the 21st Akwaaba Travel Market inside Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, something unusual caught the eyes of over 10,000 participants. In a sea of exhibitors adorned with glossy brochures and vibrant cultural displays, one delegation stood out — dressed in crisp white lab coats, stethoscopes hanging lightly around their necks, and the name ABUAD Multi-System Hospital boldly inscribed on their backs. This was Ekiti State, storming Akwaaba with a concept so unique it set conversations buzzing across the three-day event: Medical Tourism.
Leading the charge was Barrister Wale Ojo-Lanre, Director General of the Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development, who explained with unflinching passion why Ekiti came not with drummers, dancers, or masquerades this year, but with doctors’ garb. “Tourism is about wellness,” he said. “And no one can fully consume the beauty of tourism unless they are healthy. In Ekiti, we have a hospital so advanced, so well-equipped, that it stands shoulder to shoulder with the world’s best — the ABUAD Multi-System Hospital.”
With stacks of flyers supplied by Dr. Akinmade, Chief Medical Director of the hospital, the team ensured nearly every delegate went home with knowledge of what sits in the heart of Ekiti: a medical citadel where, as Ojo-Lanre declared, “no ailment is beyond cure.” For Nigerians weary of costly medical pilgrimages abroad, ABUAD MSH offers the same promise of world-class care, but without the burden of passports, visas, or draining foreign exchange.
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The Ekiti team was not alone in this vision. Their presence reflected a rare synergy between public and private forces. Alongside the Bureau of Tourism were figures from across the state’s business and social spectrum — Hon. Akin Abimbola, President of the Hoteliers Association; Dr. Mrs. Olowookere, Chairperson of the Association of Tourism Practitioners in Ekiti; Mrs. Adesola of Afreeko Crafts and Souvenirs; Comrade Okunowo representing the NURTW; and several others.
Together they painted a picture of a state where tourism is not a stand-alone enterprise, but a fusion of health, hospitality, transport, crafts, and community.
Yet perhaps the most striking symbolism of all was what this move says about Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji’s philosophy of leadership. He is not only marketing state-owned assets; he is deliberately lending visibility and support to individual entrepreneurs and private sector visionaries like Aare Afe Babalola.
In doing so, he has shown a rare understanding that governance is not a one-way street. Public responsibility must walk hand-in-hand with private initiative. It is this spirit of partnership that is quietly powering Ekiti’s rise as a model of inclusive development.
But medical tourism is not just about hospitals. It thrives on an ecosystem. Ekiti’s ecosystem is robust: good roads, a clean and secure environment, and an array of natural wonders such as Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort, Arinta Waterfall, and the mystical “Dining in the Clouds” experience in Efon Alaaye. In Ekiti, a patient could come for surgery or treatment and recover in the serene lap of nature, breathing clean air and sipping spring water at the foot of a mountain.
The boldness of Ekiti’s stand did not go unnoticed. Mr. Ikechi Uko, convener of the Akwaaba Travel Market, was quick to commend the state. “Last year, Ekiti stunned us with the concept of Educational Tourism,” he said. “This year, it is Medical Tourism. The lesson here is profound: only a medically fit person can fully embrace tourism. What Ekiti is doing is revolutionary — it is not just selling tourism, it is redefining it.”
This is the revolution Governor Oyebanji quietly launched the moment he took office — a revolution of ideas, innovation, and daring. And at Akwaaba 2025, Ekiti did not just participate; it disrupted, it led, and it expanded the very meaning of what tourism can be.
In the end, the image of Ekiti delegates
in their lab coats remains the perfect metaphor.
Here is a state not content with following the traditional script of cultural exhibitions, but one rewriting the narrative of tourism itself: where health and hospitality, medicine and mountains, clinics and culture, all meet in one place. That place is Ekiti.
That vision is Oyebanji’s.
And that future is already here.
So Visit Ekiti
The Land of Wonders !!
