From the Publisher

Ricky Katsuya

Publisher

Publisher’s Message

Hello Travel Africa readers.

In this edition of Travel Africa we are excited to feature Madagascar and its delicious cuisine (page 73). And yes, you are welcome to start making travel plans to the fourth largest island in the world. Did you know Madagascar is the leading global producer of vanilla… that the sceneries in Madagascar are unlike anything else in the world (page 48). It is safe to say, if you want to make money in a startup tourism business, your best place to go and make this happen is Madagascar.

The nation, like all the other parts of the world, is facing challenges in global warming and rising oceans. With the world coming together in the cause to reduce eff ects of global warming, islands like Madagascar will be the hive of activity and booming business.

If you have watched the movie “Madagascar” you will relate to this song by Will.i.Am in the Madagascar 2 Music Video: I Like To Move It… Yes, lets move it. Let’s move to support Madagascar through tourism, through buying products produced there, and by supporting organizations working to preserve the environment of this unique and vital island nation.

www.africabusinessassociation.com

About the Africa Business Association

The Africa Business Association is an independent international business development organization. We off er access to the latest resources, information, and best practices in advocacy and communications for the African Diaspora and the African entrepreneurs in Africa.

We work to help you have access to news and events as starting points for constructive conversations and calls to action. We seek to cut through the froth of the political spin cycle to underlying truths and values. We want to be so focused on progress that together we can provide a credible and constructive generation of Africans that take seriously our previous generations and act upon all their wishes, our hopes and aspirations to make lasting change for all future generations.

Africa Business Association "Travel Africa"

PUBLISHER/PRESIDENT

Ricky Katsuya

ADVISORY BOARD

Earl 'Skip' Cooper, II, CEO, Black Business Association H.E. Sheila Siwela, Ambassador H.E. Kone L. Tanou, Ambassador

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Ricky Katsuya

LAYOUT/TYPESETTING

Lion Communications

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Africa Must Red sets Post-Covid R

By Peter Mathuki

Coordinated Response

The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted our societies and economies, and continues to reshape the world with the emergence of new variants. The crisis has tipped the scales for the tourism sector in the region, which prepandemic, contributed signifi cantly to the bloc’s economic growth.

In 2019, the sector contributed an average of 8.1% to the gross domestic product of East African Community (EAC) partner states and brought about an average increase of 17.2% to total exports.

Tourism plays a catalytic role in the broader economy through direct revenues for airlines, travel agents, hotels, shops, restaurants, and other tourist facilities. It also contributes to indirect economic impact through induced spending in agricultural produce, manufactured goods, transportation, entertainment and handicraft.

Travel restrictions to curb the pandemic saw EAC partner states lose 92% of revenues in tourism. Arrivals dropped from approximately 7 million in 2019 to 2.25 million in 2020 (Sixth EAC Development Strategy).

With Omicron, the latest variant of the coronavirus, prompting fresh border closures, it is about time we started to interrogate the eff ectiveness of travel restrictions by weighing their disruptive social-economic impact. This seems timely as recent studies suggest that reducing community transmission rates could be more eff ective in containing the spread of the virus than border closures.

To trigger travel demand and keep global borders open, we must ensure equitable access to vaccines, coordinate international travel procedures, and embrace technology to authenticate test and vaccination certifi cates.

Like the rest of the world, the resumption of travel and tourism in Africa will depend largely on a coordinated response among countries regarding travel restrictions, harmonised safety and hygiene protocols, and eff ective communication to help restore consumer confi dence.

We must, however, appreciate that the current global health concerns and barriers to travel may take time to wane. As such, the continent must self-refl ect, and promote domestic and intra-continental tourism for a more sustainable recovery.

Africa needs to address critical tourism competitiveness drivers, to foster intra-continental tourism. Top on our agenda should be visa openness.

The Africa Visa Openness Report 2020 findings show that African citizens still need visas to travel to 46% of other African countries, while only 28% can get visas on arrival. These restrictive and cumbersome visa requirements diminish