AUDA-NEPAD is Supporting Recovery Plans for Africa’s Tourism

December 3, 2020 – The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on already slowing economies has made tourism particularly vulnerable, becoming the hardest hit sector so far in Africa. With 80% of the sector made up of small and medium-sized enterprises, millions of livelihoods in the world are left vulnerable. Therefore, it has not just been a health pandemic, but it has impacted the economic and social life of communities

However, it is proven that tourism is uniquely placed to lead future recovery, exemplified in post economic depression, Ebola eras, oil crisis, financial crisis. The sector will provide the jobs that people need to bounce back and will drive economic growth that will help whole African countries to recover. Due to its cross-cutting economic nature and deep social footprint, tourism is uniquely positioned to help societies and communities return to growth and stability.

“Even though the COVID-19 pandemic is a major setback to progress made in the tourism sector, we believe the sector has the potential to can lead economic recovery across the continent. Therefore, it is critical to continue to build partnerships for increased investment in the sector,” Mrs Estherine Lisinge-Fotabong, Director of Programmes Innovation and Planning at the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD said.

Mrs Fotabong was speaking at a workshop held by AUDA-NEPAD to validate the organisation’s post-COVID-19 Tourism Recovery Strategy, which saw the participation of Regional Economic Communities, representatives from the private sector, tourism and travel practitioners and the media fraternity. The objective of the meeting was to present the findings of the strategy and provided an opportunity to stakeholders to give feedback on the strategy.

Some key interventions raised included the safe re-opening of international borders for economies to recover, emphasis on domestic travel, regional tourism resilience, capacity building in the tourism sector , coordination within the tourism industry, embracing technology to boost tourism such as the use of Apps,  conservation of the environment, financing through debt swaps,   private sector partnerships with AUDA-NEPAD, women and youth participation in tourism, country preventative measures in COVID control and boosting existing initiatives such as the Single African Air Transport Market.

To support the continent’s recovery plans and actions, AUDA-NEPAD is working with partner institutions like the World Tourism Organisation in several activities. The key activities are guided by the AUDA-NEPAD White Paper on the Response to COVID-19 and the AUDA-NEPAD Post COVID-19 Recovery Blueprint. The activities include, but are not limited to:

• A white paper on Tourism Security in Africa to showcase early warning systems and mitigation measures of pandemics and other security threats to tourism;
• Support for rural-based tourism projects.
• Publication of the AUDA-NEPAD post-COVID-19 tourism recovery strategy.
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About the AUDA-NEPAD Tourism Recovery Strategy:

The AUDA-NEPAD Post-COVID19 Tourism Recovery Strategy is a comprehensive report which proposes several recommendations for the recovery and sustainability of the travel and tourism sector. It is addressed to businesses in the sector; member states; and regional organizations.

These recommendations include the following:

• Diversify markets, products and services;

• Invest in market intelligence systems and digital transformation;

• Reinforce tourism governance at all levels;

• Prepare for crises, build resilience and ensure that tourism is part of national emergency mechanisms and systems;

• Invest in human capital and talent development;

• Place sustainable tourism firmly in the national agenda; and

• Transition to the circular economy and embrace the SDGs.

The final strategy will be accessible on the AUDA-NEPAD Website on www.nepad.org