DRDurban: The recently concluded Africa’s Travel Indaba 2019 has brought together over 6500 delegates which included 1033 exhibitors and 1502 buyers at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban.
In his opening speech, South African Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom focused on the future of Africa’s tourism industry, saying that by 2030, the continent would be welcoming some 126 million international tourists. “Are we up to it? Yes, we most definitely are,” he said. The event became synonymous with storytelling with this year’s theme being ‘Africa’s Stories, Your Success’. “Too often the real stories of Africa are not told and not heard. Let’s work together to replace the sometimes negative narrative of Africa with the real story of so many nations on the move, of people innovating and moving confidently into the future,” Hanekom added.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa made a surprise visit to the event and spoke about the tourism industry’s importance in growing Africa’s economy and promoting a country’s identity. Green Stand Awards, held at Africa’s Travel Indaba for the first time, recognised eight companies with environment-friendly stands. Thompson’s Tourism bagged the platinum award in the large stand category. South Africa has been named best safari experience in Africa by the Safari Awards Africa 2019. Speaking on the occasion, South African Tourism acting CEO, Sthembiso Dlamini thanked all involved for making the event a roaring success.
