Hussein Al-Manai
Sharm El-Sheikh / May 20, 2024: The African Tourism Forum kicked off on Monday morning in the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh, organized by Rixos Group and GMT Company for Exhibitions and Conferences, a Turkish investment firm.
The forum was attended by several ministers, senior officials, and investors in the tourism sector from Egypt and African countries, as well as African ambassadors, Egyptian and African businessmen, and more than 2000 international tourism sector representatives from 35 countries.
This forum, the first of its kind on the African continent, aims to enhance cooperation in the tourism sector among African countries, attract foreign investments, and create new job opportunities for African youth.
The opening ceremony of the forum was attended by Dr. Ahmed Issa, the Egyptian Minister of Tourism, Major General Khaled Fouda, Governor of South Sinai, Fattah Tamngi, Founder and Chairman of Rixos Group, Nasser Abdel Latif, owner of Rixos Egypt Group, Selcuk Meral, Director of the Turkish company GMT, and Dr. Yousry El-Sharkawi, President of the Egyptian African Businessmen Association.
In his speech at the forum, the Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Ahmed Issa, emphasized the importance of establishing and coordinating unified policies aimed at maximizing mutual interests and enhancing inter-African tourism.
He stated that this forum serves as a professional gathering and an effective participatory platform to highlight the distinguished and unique tourism potentials and products of our ancient African continent. It is an opportunity to enhance mutual tourism cooperation among African countries and encourage experts, professionals, and investors in the tourism sector to join efforts in developing the tourism industry in Africa and boosting its role in the global tourism sector.
He pointed out that this forum and exhibition come at a time when our African continent is witnessing great success in recovering the rates of incoming tourist traffic, having regained 96% of the volume of incoming traffic it had in 2019, according to a report by the World Tourism Organization. This report described tourism in Africa as the fastest-growing in 2023, a fact that fills us all with pride and motivates us to continue working on enhancing further mechanisms of mutual African cooperation and integration to draw a roadmap for the tourism industry in Africa.
He mentioned that the tourism industry in Egypt has achieved positive results in recent times, in light of implementing the national strategy for tourism development, which includes a set of policies and general plans to develop the industry, contributing to achieving its targets of an annual growth rate ranging between 25% to 30%, reaching 30 million tourists by 2028. The three main pillars of this strategy address the most prominent challenges facing the industry, preventing the achievement of increased inbound tourism numbers. These pillars include working on increasing the number of inbound flight seats to Egypt in cooperation with the Ministry of Civil Aviation, improving the investment climate in the tourism sector in Egypt, especially in hospitality, and working on enhancing the tourism experience in Egypt and raising the quality of tourism services provided.
In light of implementing this strategy, Egypt achieved a record number of inbound tourist traffic in 2023, with the number of inbound tourists reaching 14.906 million, surpassing the tourism figures of 2010, which is considered a peak year with 14.731 million tourists.
Major General Khaled Fouda, Governor of South Sinai, said that the great importance of holding this significant forum stems from the increasing and inevitable role that the tourism industry plays in the economic elevation of African countries in particular and the world in general, especially in light of the regional and international changes and challenges that have impacted many countries worldwide.
The governor explained that cooperation and collective work among those involved in the tourism and investment sectors have become imperative in light of these changes, as evidenced by the interest and attendance of more than 2000 participants from around the world, in addition to many African ambassadors, tourism experts, travel agencies, and tourism authorities from more than 30 countries at this forum. The forum’s importance is also reflected in the invitation of hundreds of tourism experts and specialists from dozens of European and Arab countries.
He noted that African countries possess enormous potential that positions them to occupy top spots on the global tourism map, including thousands of kilometers of the best beaches and coasts in the world, hundreds of natural reserves, lakes, waterfalls, natural water cascades, stunning environments, and a robust infrastructure, including international airlines, tens of thousands of kilometers of excellent roads, hundreds of bridges and tunnels, and diverse hotels catering to all tourist levels. Among these cities is Sharm El-Sheikh.
Dr. Yousry El-Sharkawi, President of the Egyptian African Businessmen Association, stated in his speech during the opening of the African Tourism Forum that this forum represents a historic opportunity to enhance cooperation among African countries in the field of tourism and attract foreign investments.
He emphasized that the African continent enjoys immense tourism potential, from breathtaking natural landscapes to rich historical and cultural sites. However, we must work together to develop the tourism infrastructure, promote African tourism destinations, and provide high-quality services to tourists.
Fattah Tamngi, Founder of Rixos, stated, “The African Tourism Forum is a significant event that will substantially contribute to the development of the tourism sector in Africa and achieve sustainable development for African peoples. Sharm El-Sheikh is one of the most important tourist destinations in Egypt and Africa.”
Mr. Tamngi added, “Personally, if I were to choose a tourist destination, I would choose Egypt because it has many tourist potentials and is blessed with year-round good weather. The Alamein region is also one of the best tourist destinations in the world.”
He further added, “Egypt can achieve 60 million tourists, not just 10 million, given its unique tourism potentials such as rich Egyptian culture, enjoyable weather all year round, and the human resources of Egyptian youth.”
The first opening session of the first African Tourism Forum in Sharm El-Sheikh, titled “How to Create the Luxury Brand,” followed. The session featured Gaurav Bhushan, Co-CEO of Ennismore and CEO of Lifestyle & Leisure Brands at Accor Hotels, and participation from Fattah Tamngi, Founder of Rixos Hotels.
On the other hand, the African Tourism Forum program includes various events and discussion panels addressing important topics such as sustainable tourism, cultural tourism, digital tourism, tourism investment, marketing, and human resource development in the tourism sector.
Workshops will cover topics such as starting a successful tourism project, using social media for marketing, creating engaging content, and providing excellent customer service.
The accompanying exhibition features participation from tourism companies, hotels, and tourism destinations from across Africa.
The African Tourism Forum will continue tomorrow, May 21, with more discussion panels, workshops, presentations, and bilateral meetings.
The forum aims to produce concrete recommendations to enhance cooperation in the tourism sector among African countries and attract foreign investments. These recommendations are essential for ensuring the sustainability of the tourism sector in Africa.
The African Tourism Forum is a significant event that will greatly contribute to the development of the tourism sector in Africa and achieve sustainable development for African peoples.
