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The Principal Secretary of the Department of Tourism, Hon. John Ololtuaa, has urged African states to collaborate to ensure that the tourism sector is sustainably anchored through enhanced education, skills, and strategic investments.
These efforts aim to facilitate growth and ensure the safety of destinations.
Speaking at the 67th Meeting of the UN Tourism Regional Commission for Africa (CAF) and the Brand Africa and Tourism Think Tank, where Kenya is a Co-Vice Chair, Hon. Ololtuaa joined other tourism leaders to discuss transforming Africa’s future through education, skills, and strategic investments in tourism for sustainable and inclusive growth.
Key issues addressed included current barriers to attracting investment in tourism education and capacity building in Africa, and opportunities to improve the attractiveness of Africa’s diverse tourism offerings. Notably, there is a need to incorporate synergies between education and employment in the tourism sector into UN Tourism’s strategic plans. These initiatives are designed to not only develop a highly skilled workforce but also to stimulate innovation, advance sustainable practices, and drive economic growth within the industry.
PS Ololtuaa emphasized the need for government policies, incentives, and initiatives to attract and sustain tourism investment.
“We are happy to be part of the deliberations that challenge us to attract more investment into Africa,” Ololtuaa stated.
“In Kenya, we have seen the consistent entry into the market of international hotel chains—the latest being JW Marriot, which opened its doors to Kenya earlier this year. We encourage our governments to avail policies that will advantage the tourism sector in upscaling skills, tapping investment, and keeping our destinations safe,” he added.
The meeting deliberated on key issues aimed at enhancing Africa’s competitiveness through an enhanced reputation of member states as safe and welcoming destinations, improved law enforcement capabilities in handling tourism-related incidents, strengthened collaboration between tourism stakeholders, boosting tourist arrivals, and economic benefits for local communities, as well as developing prevention, information, and alert systems.
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Currently, global tourism recovery to pre-pandemic levels is at 96%, with Africa at 98% according to 2023 numbers. African destinations such as Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Morocco have showcased remarkable growth, with impressive increases in visitor numbers far surpassing pre-pandemic levels.
Africa, a continent endowed with rich cultural diversity, stunning landscapes, and a wealth of natural resources, presents unparalleled opportunities for tourism.
Arrivals to Kenya from Africa stand at 41% compared to 29% from Europe, reflecting the growing number of Africans choosing to experience destinations within the continent.
This has been enhanced by the scrapping of visa requirements in favor of an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) to ease access for travelers, including those from the African continent.
Tourism is considered one of the leading employers in the world. By 2019, the sector had generated 7% of global trade and employed one in 10 people worldwide, especially women and youth, thus making it a key economic driver.
The annual forum provides a platform for African member states of UN Tourism to come together to shape the future of tourism on the continent.
It also provides an opportunity to address critical topics, including sustainability (especially given the impact of climate change), inclusiveness, air connectivity, development of tourism infrastructure, human resources in the tourism sector, digitalization, and product diversification.
UN Tourism Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili encouraged African states to continue tapping into the support the organization is extending to destinations to develop investment guidelines.