6th Annual Presidential Forum on Africa Tourism

Images from the event.

Hosted by New York University’s Africa House and moderated by Ali Velshi, CNN Senior Correspondent, this one-day event organized by the Africa Travel Association (ATA) offered Africa’s leaders an important opportunity to speak about how travel and tourism contribute to a country’s economy and development. Ten African leaders (from the AUC, Benin, Burundi, Ghana, The Gambia, Liberia, Malawi, Morocco, Tanzania, and the World Bank) addressed the 2011 forum. The featured theme for this year was, “The Role of Entrepreneurship in Africa’s Tourism Industry.”

Guests:

• Honorable Amina Ali, Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary, African Union Permanent Representative to the USA;

• Honorable Fatou Mas-Jobe Njie, Minister of Tourism & Culture, Republic of The Gambia, President of the Africa Travel Association (ATA);

• Honorable Ezekiel Maige, Minister of Natural Resources and Tourism, United Republic of Tanzania;

• Dr. Yaw Nyarko, Director-Africa House, Professor of Economics, New York University (NYU);

• Mr. Mohamed Hegazy, Tourism Attache, Egyptian Tourism Authority, USA & Latin America;

• Mrs. Rica Rwigamba, Head of Tourism and Conservation Department, Rwanda Development Board;

• Mr. David Scowsill, President & CEO, The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC);

• Mr. Taleb Rifai, Secretary General, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)(video address);

• Mr. Marcio Lucca de Paula, Executive Director for External Relations and Partnerships at the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO);

• Mr. Nigel Vere Nicoll, Managing Director, Advancing Tourism to Africa (Atta);

• Mr. Hugh Riley, Secretary General & CEO, Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO);

• Mr. Edward Bergman, Executive Director, Africa Travel Association (ATA).