By OBAKENG MAJE
Minister for Tourism, Patricia De Lille said with a fully sold-out floor space, Africa’s Travel Indaba has reached a ground-breaking achievement as it will see an unprecedented participation of 26 African countries exhibiting this year. De Lille said this is testament to the pivotal role the trade show plays in advancing the continent’s growth.
She further said this year’s Africa’s Travel Indaba, will take place from 14 to 16 May 2024 and will be preceded by Business Opportunity Networking Day (BONday) on 13 May 2024. De Lille added that this is an important gathering of the global tourism sector and other related industry stakeholders.
“Over 26 countries will be exhibiting this year, including Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia and Rwanda.
“Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zanzibar and Zimbabwe, will also form part. These countries represent a total of 344 products that will be showcased, an increase of 14 % compared to last year’s 301 products,” she said.
De Lille said Burkina Faso, Eritrea, and Guinea, are the three new entrants. She said overall, a total of 55 countries are participating in this year’s event, including all newcomers.
“In total, this year’s event will see more than 1 030 exhibitors showcasing their products and tourism offerings and more than 890 buyers attending the event from all over the world. The buyers include inbound tour operators, foreign travel agents, destination marketing companies, online booking agents and airlines.
“As usual, the department will be funding the participation of 120 South Africans’ small to medium enterprises to exhibit their tourism offerings at this year’s Africa Travel indaba. This will help them gain exposure to a wide-ranging network of tourism trade industry players from all over Africa and the world,” said De Lille.
She said this is Africa Travel Indaba’s ongoing mission and commitment to driving the continent’s economic development and fostering collaboration and growth is clear. De Lille said she is pleased to welcome the new countries that are joining them in exhibiting at the trade show for the first time.
“We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial partnership. The increase in the number of countries can be attributed to several key factors, including the fact that in the past few years, tourism has also emerged as a cornerstone of sustainable development strategies across the continent.
“Africa’s Travel Indaba provides a platform for African tourism product owners to meet with global buyers. With a record number of participating countries this year, buyers will have a wide variety of products and experiences to engage with,” she said.
According to De Lille, she is confident that Africa’s Travel Indaba will continue to be a fertile environment for closing business deals that nurture partnership and drive growth.
TaungDailyNews 