Tourism in Africa

1
Tourism in Africa Challenges
OpportunitiesPresentation to the International
and National Tourism and Hospitality Colloquium

• 16th October 2007David FrostWTTC Advisor -
  Africa

2
Current State of Tourism in Africa

• Tourism, with its low barriers to entry and
  ability to create jobs quickly and in rural areas
  is often touted as a panacea sector. Intuitively
  tourism could and should be seized on by
  governments in Africa as priority sector that can
  deliver real returns. This is especially true
  given the natural resource endowments many
  African countries posses. Indeed, when one
  examines the overall economic growth strategies
  of many African countries, tourism is right up
  there, identified as a priority sector.
• Why then does Africa continue to attract such a
  low proportion of international tourism. The
  answer lies squarely with the lack of real
  investment by African governments in developing
  and marketing their countries as tourism
  destinations. Moreover, where best practice has
  been established and realised, this is not widely
  communicated and learned from.
• Is it then possible, against this backdrop, to
  develop workable growth strategies that will
  increase the competitiveness of various African
  countries and drive additional tourism receipts?
  Clearly South Africa, Egypt and to a lesser
  degree Kenya, stand out as examples where
  significant investments in destination
  positioning have occurred. There have, however,
  been some questions raised recently whether,
  given the massive budget of South African
  Tourism, the performance in key international
  markets, especially compared to other more paltry
  funded destinations, is adequate.
• Without seeking to engage in a critique of SA
  Tourism and its current strategies, the
  presentation will focus on a smaller African
  country, with a budget that is only 5 of South
  Africas namely Namibia. By focusing and
  implementing a well thought through growth
  strategy, the presentation will show that smaller
  African countries can indeed take quantum leaps
  in increasing tourism receipts. The presentation
  will unpack some of the tactical as well as
  strategic initiatives that have resulted in a
  well above average performance.
• In conclusion, based on the Namibian experience,
  suggestions for positioning tourism to access a
  portion of the vast developmental largesse
  available to Africa will be put forward.

3
Africa in Perspective
3.2
World 735
International Tourism Receipts, US billion 2006
Source UNWTO
4
Africa in Perspective
4.9
World 842
International Tourist Arrivals (million) 2006
Source UNWTO
5
Africa in Perspective
International Tourism Receipts per arrival (US)
2006
Source UNWTO
6
Africa in Perspective
International Tourist Arrivals 2005 2006
change
Source UNWTO
7
Current State of Tourism in Africa

• Government policy
• Tourism promotion agency budgets

8
Selected National Tourism Board Budgets 2005
9
Current State of Tourism in Africa

• Government policy
• Tourism promotion agency budgets
• Lots of activity but no coherent growth plans
• No best practice learning
• Boutique operators
• Air access
• Infrastructure
• No co-ordination (RESTOSA ??)

10
Opportunities

• Commodities ? - Tourism ?
• Access to markets key
• Can turnaround Eg. Namibia
• Growth strategy

11
Total International Leisure
18,000
16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
12
Namibia Performance 2003
13
International Arrivals Market Share 2006
Other Countries
8.2
USA
8.0
Germany
Australia
33.3
2.3
Other Europe
3.3
Belgium
1.8
1.9
Portugal
2.2
Spain
4.4
6.0
Switzerland
2.6
12.1
4.6
3.6
Netherlands
5.9
Austria
UK
Scandinavia
Italy
France
14
The Marketing Strategy

• Tactical
• Strategic
• Organisational / Institutional

15
Target Markets

• Primary Markets
• German Speaking Europe
• UK Ireland
• South Africa
• Angola

• Secondary Markets
• France
• Benelux
• USA
• Italy

16
The Marketing Strategy
Increased Arrivals
17
Co-op Marketing Delivery

• 2004 2006 spent NAD 9,3 million
• Calculated in-country injection NAD 431 million
  
• Extra 14,000 tourists

18
Marketing Strategy Strategic
19
The Namibia Brand
Its like a different planet here on earth
Namibia demands a lot, but gives you a lot in
return
I like the idea of going somewhere before the
rest of the world has discovered it
20
The Namibia Brand
Its as if God has finished and youre the first
person there
Its like where the world ends
The animals came right up to me and surrounded
me
21
The Namibia Brand
The quiet that surrounds you lets you look
inside yourself somehow
When you look at the Namibian landscape, you can
see the hand of God.
Its all about the vastness and what it does to
you as a person
22
The Namibia Brand
The openness, silence, vastness, distances,
stars it all makes you feel fulfilled.
Offers real tranquillity, here you can truly get
away from people
Made me feel small, insignificant
all the worries at home paled into
nothing
There are still places in Namibia that you feel
are yet to be discovered
23
The Marketing Strategy
Key Strategic Elements
24
Implementation

• Good representation
• Bolstered good offices
• Shut down inefficient offices
• Great PR

25
International Arrivals Market Share 2006
26
International Arrivals Market Share 2006
South Africa Change
Namibia Change
Total non-Africa
USA
Total Europe
Spain
Netherlands
Switzerland
Scandinavia
France
Italy
UK
Germany
0
10
20
30
40
0
5
10
15
20
27
Opportunities

• Commodities ? - Tourism ?
• Access to markets key
• Can turnaround Eg. Namibia
• Growth strategy
• MCC Tourism request US95 m
• US14 m - marketing

28
Way Forward

• Engage both governments private sector within
  Africa
• Work towards ? tourisms role in development
  agenda
• SAT Botswana Sept 2007 www.wttc.org
• Share best practice
• Get going with how
• But this has to come from Africans
• Global Travel Tourism Summit Dubai 21st 23rd
  April 2008
• 2009 South Africa ??