Uganda wins gold at Africa’s Travel Indaba in South Africa
Tourism Minister, Professor Ephraim Kamuntu (2nd left) shows the gold certificate Uganda won at Africa's Travel Indaba to South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa (2nd right) during his visit to the top continental travel and trade expo taking place in Durban. The certificate, won in the Southern African Development Community and Africa, was presented to Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) in recognition of Uganda's outstanding stand at Indaba. PHOTO BY EDGAR R. BATTE
What you need to know:
- Uganda also emerged among the best exhibitors at tourism expos such as ITB Berlin, the Bird Fair in London, UK in 2017 and the Kenya Tourism expo, among others.
- Africa’s Travel Indaba is the third largest annual tourism expo in the world and the largest on the African continent.
For its beautiful stand, Uganda has won the gold award at the top annual Africa’s Travel Indaba in Durban, South Africa.
Under the auspices of Uganda Tourism Board (UTB), the destination marketing agency, Uganda beat Namibia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) at the Southern African Development Community and Africa.
The Ugandan stand is semi eco-friendly with grass thatch below which is a well-lit canvas on which the word Uganda is printed in large black font on different sides to announce the presence of the Pearl of Africa, alongside the other two flag colours of yellow and red.
The stand has different photographs that show the prized mountain gorilla, the shoebills and a television screen showcasing more tourism offerings from the East African gem.
Uganda imaginatively captured organisers as the most creative of stands at the premium expo that brings together international hosted buyers, media and business personnel. It is the third time the Pearl of Africa is winning the gold award, having won it in 2015 and 2016 respectively.
A delegation comprising 13 private tour operators and government agencies led by officials from UTB represented Uganda in the annual showcase.
“Uganda has been recognized and given an award in the very competitive Indaba Travel show. This has come as a result of harmonized and sustained effort from the Ugandan team to promote and market Uganda as a preferred tourist destination. Uganda has a lot to offer on the international market. It is ranked by international platforms, from CNN, BBC, Lonely Planet, Rough Guides or National Geographic,” explains Professor Ephraim Kamuntu, minister of tourism, wildlife and antiquities.
“We put a lot of work into our exhibition stall to ensure that it captures all elements of tourism in our country; that is wildlife and cultural heritage, whilst also ensuring that the spacing would enable close interaction with our visitors,” UTB’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Miss Lilly Ajarova explains.
She adds, “We are elated to have won gold as the best exhibitor at this year’s Indaba fair. This is true testament to Uganda’s immense natural endowment and also shows that the world is appreciating our tourism potential. This therefore calls for concerted efforts to market our country to the world because we offer the most complete tourist experience.”
Uganda also emerged among the best exhibitors at tourism expos such as ITB Berlin, the Bird Fair in London, UK in 2017 and the Kenya Tourism expo, among others.
Africa Travels Indaba is a tourism expo hosted by South African Tourism and attended by both tourism buyers and sellers from all over the world at the International Convention Center in Durban, South Africa.
It is the third largest annual tourism expo in the world and the largest on the African continent. It is a leading Business-to-Business exhibition for Africa’s leisure travel industry; bringing the World to Africa and bringing Africa to the world’s leading source markets.
