Category: Africa

Seychelles Tourism Board is looking for enhancing inbound tourists from the second tier cities of India. With the aim of expanding their reach to more cities of India, destination training workshops were conducted by the Seychelles tourism board in Surat and Nagpur. The objective of the workshops was to provide the tour operators with information and details about Seychelles and to find new potential partners who could promote the destinations in Seyshelles. (Photo courtesy: Udaipur Times) Events were attended by 25-30 companies in each city, which included destination presentations followed by question and answer and networking sessions. The training session ... Read more

Zari with State Minister of Tourism Godfrey Kiwanda Suubi Ugandan Ministry of Tourism has appointed Zari Hassan as the ambassador for Tourism in the country. It was announced by State Minister of Tourism Godfrey Kiwanda Suubi after a meeting with Zari at his office. Zarinah Hassan, commonly known as Zari, is a Ugandan socialite, musician and businesswoman, who resides in South Africa, where she runs a chain of schools and student hostels and other businesses. Zari is the face of Danube furniture that recently opened a branch in Uganda with headquartered in UAE. She is also the Mercedes Benz brand ... Read more

Magical Kenya Tourism Expo 2018 Kenya’s tourism marketers have formulated plans to consider Africa as a key regional market to grow its tourism business, a senior official said. “We are actively engaging with travel agents and tour operators in Nigeria to expose them to the diverse tourist offering in Kenya and the rest of East Africa that would be of interest to travellers from Nigeria and the rest of West Africa,” said Betty Radier, Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) CEO. She was talking to the media at the ‘Magical Kenya Travel Expo’ in Nairobi. Radier said bilateral discussions were going on ... Read more

Volcanoes Gorilla National Park, Rwanda Gorilla tourism is one of the major sources of revenue for Rwanda. As per the WWF conservation group the number of the mountain gorillas are around 600 in the Virunga Massif, a mountainous area encompassing parts of Rwanda, Uganda and Congo. Tourists can watch gorillas from short distance, in their natural habitat at the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Thousands of tourists, local and from foreign countries visit the National Park every year. However, the flow of tourists have declined this year as the authorities have increased the price of a permit to visit the ... Read more

  Digitization has been changing the whole perspective of tourism in the world.  From searching for the next trip destination, checking in at the airport, or when looking up foreign dishes on the menu, digital technology has a significant role. While the world has been celebrating the World Tourism Day, the tagline was ‘Tourism and Digital Transformation’, citing the influence of digital media in the tourism sector. Just like the global tourism industry, the Ugandan market is steadily adapting to the digital trends. There is an ease in accessibility and personalized experiences. Tourism businesses and organisations have effectively created digital ... Read more

Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica Tourism Minister will be participating in the Tourism Expo Japan 2018 and Visit Japan Travel & MICE Mart 2018, which happening from 20th to 23rd September 2018 in Tokyo. The ministry plan to strengthen ties with Japan on a sustainable manner and to increase the visitors from Japan to Jamaica. “Twenty years ago, Jamaica received around 20,000 Japanese visitors per year, but that has since decreased to roughly 2,000 per annum, due to the economic slowdown in Japan and other factor,” said Bartlet. Japanese tourists are the world’s fourth largest contributor to the tourism industry. Around 17 ... Read more

Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife, flag off the vehicles Kenya Wild Life Services (KWS) has acquired a fleet of 26 vehicles to be used for rapid response to human-wildlife conflicts and parks management. Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife, flagged off the vehicles and handed over them to the field stations across the country at KWS headquarters in Nairobi. KWS is a state corporation that was established by an Act of Parliament (Cap 376), with the mandate to conserve and manage wildlife in Kenya, and to enforce related laws and regulations. KWS undertakes conservation and ... Read more

Kericho Tea Plantation (Photo courtesy: jamiiforums.com) Kenya plans to grant loans at discounted interest rates to the hospitality industry to promote green tourism. It was informed by Jonah Ormoi, the chief executive officer of State-owned Tourism Finance Corporation. “We will extend loans at below market rates to the hospitality sector in order to ensure that the tourism sector has a low carbon footprint,” Ormoi said during a forum on sustainable trends in the MICE (Meetings Incentives Conference and Exhibitions) tourism sector. Repayment of the loan should only be started after 24 months from the date of loan.  The authorities expect ... Read more

Launch of Flip-Flop dhow at Lamu Island, Kenya Lamu Island of Kenyan has marked history on recycling plastic on 15th September 2018, by sailing on boat built entirely of recycled plastic. They have been collecting plastics from the ocean and the surroundings through their clean-up campaign since last year. In order to curtail the menace of plastic to the environment, the Kenyan government has imposed the world’s toughest law against plastic bags, stating offenders, including producers, retailers, and ordinary users, to face imprisonment for up to four years or fines of USD 40,000. Boat under construction Mostly all the plastic ... Read more

Fashion, art, travel, food, design, adventure, architecture, hi-tech/hi-touch and creativity, Africa is positively brimming with new and undiscovered experiences. AccorHotels invite guests, travelling nomads and the curious-at-heart to rediscover the continent through a completely new lens – MyChicAfrica – featuring inspiration insights, newfound narratives, and visually arresting content. Following the immensely successful #MyChicAfrica social media campaign, which paired prominent African influencers together to provide an ‘off the beaten track’ look at their locales, AccorHotels in Africa is now ready to venture even further. The launch of its lifestyle media platform – MyChicAfrica.AccorHotels.com – a depository of material named after this culturally ... Read more

Kofi Annan’s Funeral Ceremony in Ghana Catherine Afeku, Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture of Ghana, said that Kofi Annan will be honoured forever. She was speaking to the media persons at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC), where the seventh UN Chief has been laid-in-state. “Annan was an excellent diplomat and an honourable person who will forever remain in history,” she said. Though his demise is a great loss for the whole world, Ghana will be benefited from his demise, as it will be known as the final resting place of the world renowned diplomat. “He has made his ... Read more

Rwanda and China officials at the Rwanda Week in China The Rwanda Development Board (RDB), in association with the Embassy of Rwanda in China, has organised a road-shows in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and the Dongguan Province to showcase Rwanda’s investment and tourism opportunities to Chinese investors. The event named Rwanda Week in China, entailed investor forums in Beijing and Shenzhen that attracting over 400 companies as well as one-on-one sessions with targeted Chinese investors and tour operators. During the event, Emmanuel Hategeka, Chief Operating Officer of RDB, exhorted the investors to visit Rwanda and invest in the ... Read more

Green House The 2nd Urban Agri Africa 2018 Summit will be held on September 25 – 26 at the Sunnyside Park Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa.  With the agriculture sector at the centre of persistent discussions and debate around transformation and economic empowerment, this 2nd Urban Agri Africa 2018 Summit is not only timely, but highly relevant. Organized by Magenta Global, the two-day Conference includes a dynamic offering of engaging presentations and panel discussions.  It will bring together all agriculture stakeholders – from policy makers, trade and investment promotion agencies, farmers (both smallholders and commercial farmers), credit and agri-financiers, agri ... Read more

China is going to build a ‘luxury city’named ‘Tourism Vacation Town’ in Cambodia with a cost of USD 1.2 Billion. With this project, China is said to be extending its influence in the south-east Asian countries. Chinese developer Tianjin Union Development Group (UDG) says Tourism Vacation Town will feature high-end hotels, offices and theme parks on 1,200 hectares of land in Cambodia’s south-western Koh Kong province. Meanwhile, UDG has already started work for resort in the same province, named Dara Sakor with a project cost of USD 3.8 billion. The land was given to USG for a 99 year lease ... Read more

Kenya to have discussions with economy airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet to begin flying to the East African nation famous for its beaches and safaris. Tourism is one of the country’s highest revenue earners of the nation and earned around USD 1.2 billion last year, as per statistics from the Kenya Tourism Board. “We are developing a strategy to encourage low-cost carriers from the U.K. to fly here,” said Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism, Kenya. Other than beaches and safaris, Kenya is also popular for its wildlife. The authorities expect, with the arrival of low-cost flights the inbound tourist ... Read more