Africa's vast tourism potential remains untapped due to a lack of air connectivity, with Africa currently accounting for just 1.9% of global passenger and cargo traffic. However, aviation experts believe national tourism boards have a unique opportunity to drive new airline routes and spur economic growth.
At a recent AviaDev Africa workshop, which was hosted in collaboration with the SADC Business Council Tourism Alliance, airline executives stressed the power of tourism boards in leveraging market data and industry relationships to convince sceptical carriers of new routes' long-term viability.
Tourism is more than just leisure. It's a critical economic activity that requires strategic thinking and collaboration across sectors, said Kojo Bentum-Williams , UN Tourism's Senior Africa Communications Expert.
Sylvain Bosc , former Chief Commercial Officer of SAA and Fastjet, stressed the importance of demonstrating sustained profitability. Destination marketing organisations (DMOs) must sell a long-term vision highlighting the destinations growth prospects and economic impact, he said. Creative incentives like co-marketing, reducing airline costs, and quantifying passenger volumes can be more powerful than direct subsidies, said Bosc.
Bosc noted that DMOs need to bring new light to data airlines already have, by offering insights into upcoming local economic developments like new mines or infrastructure projects that could drive corporate traffic. Local insights can provide airlines with the confidence they need to invest in new routes, he said.
