The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted that African countries no longer have a choice but to work together to grow and recover their tourism industries. And while government initiatives to do so have not come to fruition, it was now time for private-sector players to lead the way.
This was one of the key messages highlighted on the first day of the 5th annual African Tourism Leadership Forum 2022 (ATLF) held at the Gaborone International Convention Centre, Botswana, this week (October 24 to 26).
“One of the great side-effects of COVID-19 was that it saw an increase of regional and domestic tourism, showing us that if we grow intra-Africa tourism, we build resilience,” said Dr Geoffrey Manyara, Economic Affairs Officer for Tourism for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Rwanda.
A total of 411 delegates from 40 African countries are attending the event in person with many turning in virtually as well. These include Tourism Ministers – including SA Deputy Minister of Tourism, Fish Mahlalela – delegates from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) tourism development agencies, tourism departments and boards, foreign mission representatives and high-level decision-makers from airlines, hotels, financial institutions, tech companies and more.
“As a gathering of industry thought leaders, this year’s Forum is focused on advancing the call of the sector to be intentional about practical measures and initiatives that will strengthen and accelerative intra-Africa travel and tourism development through trade, partnerships and investment,” said Kwakye Donkor, CEO of Africa Tourism Partners, which worked in partnership with UNWTO, analysts BDO and the International Congress and Convention Association to bring the ATLF 2022 to fruition.
“Tourism is a key sector that is being mainstreamed and contributing to many economies on the continent. Its recovery and growth are informed by decisions made by policy-makers and the key stakeholders in the industry,” said Elcia Grandcourt, Director: UNWTO Africa.
She added: “More efforts, commitments and advocacy are needed to strongly promote Intra-Africa travel through the African Free Trade Area (AfFTA) initiative. Tourism is an important economic driver and it is imperative for countries to maximise on the economic benefits derived from tourism by making more efforts to increase linkages and reduce leakages in the tourism sector. This can be achieved through economic transformation, inclusive growth and competitiveness across the tourism value chain.”
Intra-Africa tourism drives intra-Africa trade
Looking at promoting tourism as part of the AfFTA, Manyara referred to a study done recently by the UN Economic Commission for Africa highlighting that an increase in tourism leads to an increase in trade, not the other way around.
During an open forum, delegates agreed with the need for greater collaboration to drive intra-Africa travel but highlighted visas and the lack of flight frequencies on the continent as major barriers to that.
