Africans decide on way forward for seamless travel in Accra today

With the recently Launched Visa on Arrival programme for all Africans  by Ghana, there would still be need for 14 Visa stickers on travellers passport visiting West Africa. This is one of the clogs that have contributed to low Number of Tourists arrivals in Africa, despite the long beaches and great cultures.

Today here at the Accra Weizo, this issue and others will be addressed by a leading tourism and travel expert in the private sector in West Africa at the 2nd Accra Weizo. Carmen Nigibira the Coordinator of the East Africa tourism platform. East Africa had launched an ambitious project of Schengen style joint single visa to Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda to integrate the tourism offerings in the region. They have gone further to integrate joint marketing at trade shows and events.

West Africa needs to learn from these experiments at Joint marketing and regional branding. Accra Weizo is an event put together by the organisers of Akwaaba African Travel Market with the support of Ghana Ministry of Tourism Culture and Creative Arts to foster the African dream. It debuted last year.

This edition themed: “Seamless Travels in West Africa” has gathered an expert in the industry to a discussion session on West Africa as a single destination holding right away at La Palm Royal Beach Hotel with supports from Ethiopian Airlines, Accra city hotel and Kempinski Gold City Hotel, Accra.

Also, the Weizo session will take a critical look at ways to improve travel and tourism growth in West Africa through easy access to towns and cities in West Africa.

Improving and simplifying airport and border processes; Standardising hotel and facilities for tourism through shared vision.

The organiser, Mr Ikechi Uko, in a release to Travelpulse&MICE, said, “The tourism session will be on the Prospect of West Africa as a Single Tourism Destination.

“There will be a case study on the South African Tourism experience in West Africa to be anchored by Hloni Pitso, the Regional Manager of South Africa Tourism in West Africa. The session will have as discussants the President of Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP), Tour Operators Union of Ghana (TOUGHA), National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) and heads of the tourism associations from Benin and Togo. It will be moderated by a leading Ghanaian journalist, Abeku Santana.”