Global Tourism Award goes to East Africa

East Africa was the preferred tourism destination at the 12th UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Awards for Excellence and Innovation in Tourism

109 destinations from Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe registered in the competition. From the 17 selected finalists, the award ceremony held in Madrid, Spain, recognized the Eastern African countries as the global preferred destinations.

The East Africa Tourism Platform has proved to reflect efficient management, sustainable and innovative tourism solutions and processes. The EATP includes sector players from Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania.

The visa requirements, the tourism services and joint marketing efforts of these countries qualified EATP as the first runner-up in the competition.

Carmen Nibigira, the EATP Regional Co-ordinator, declared on behalf of the five East African countries receiving the award:

“We are one people, but with a rich cultural diversity that needs to be tapped and harnessed for the benefit of developing tourism and our economies at large.

“Through this tool, regional tourism stakeholders have started trading each other’s products, packaging tourism products without borders, bench-marking among themselves and learning from each other.”

Also, East Africa will attend the ITP Berlin tourism expo this year, during 9-13 March in Berlin, Germany.