The VA TourismPodcast

Mauritius Tourism shares Positive industry outlook with stakeholders as Island continues to welcome tourists

My Guest, Arvind Bundhun the Director-General of Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority tells me Mauritius is ready to receive the world again and has been impressed with the over 225,000 tourists the island has received since the reopening of its borders 4 months ago. Arvind revealed that South Africa has been instrumental to its success as a destination and the coming weeks and days will see a ramp-up in air access from Johannesburg to Mauritius.

MeetingsAfrica set a new era for Live Events

In today’s episode, the Chief Convention Bureau Officer of the South African National Convention Bureau Mrs. Amanda Kotze-Nlapo expresses delight at the successful hosting of this year’s Meetings Africa and how she believes it will go a long way to reignite the MICE sector in Africa. 
Mrs. Kotze-Nhlapo joined South African Tourism following a successful tenure at the Cape Town and Western Cape Convention Bureau where she held the position of the head of the Bureau for six years. Amanda has 20 years of experience in the industry. 

Protecting endangered Gorillas and other wildlife through one Health approaches, the story of Dr Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka

My Guest today is the Founder and CEO of award wining NGO Conservation Through Public Health, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka. Her NGO protects endangered gorillas and other wildlife through One Health approaches. In today’s conversation she discusses the need for the tourism sector to make conservation a cardinal pillar of the industry and sheds light on the initiatives her NGO and other partners have engaged in to improve the lives of communities as well as the well-being of the gorillas. 
Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka is the Founder and CEO of Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH), an award wining NGO that protects endangered gorillas and other wildlife through One Health approaches.
After graduating from the Royal Veterinary College, University of London, in 1996, she established Uganda Wildlife Authority’s first veterinary department. In 2000, she did a Zoological Medicine Residency and Master in Specialized Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina Zoological Park and North Carolina State University, where masters research on disease at the human/wildlife/livestock interface led her to found CTPH in 2003. In 2015, she founded Gorilla Conservation Coffee to support farmers living around habitats where gorillas are found.
CTPH’s most recent award is the 2020 Saint Andrews Prize for the Environment. Dr. Gladys is a National Geographic Explorer and winner of the 2009 Whitley Gold Award and 2018 Sierra Club EarthCare Award and 2017 Golden Jubilee Medal from the President of Uganda. In 2020, she was awarded the Uganda Veterinary Association World Veterinary Day Award and Aldo Leopold Award for Mammologists. In 2021 she was recognised by Avance Media among 100 most influential women in Africa and  recently won the UNEP Champions of the Earth Award in the category of Science and Innovation.
She is the current Chairperson of the Africa Chapter of the Explorers Club, on the leadership council of Women for the Environment in Africa, and Vice President of the African Primatological Society. She has recently been appointed to the World Health Organization Special Advisory Group for the Origin of Novel Pathogens (WHO SAGO).
 

Africa MICE Masterclass will expose Participants to new tools and Trends- Linda Pereira

With a week to the 16th edition of Meetings Africa in Johannesburg South Africa, a leading voice in the business events and mice sector, Linda Pereira is urging businesses in the industry to use the event to sharpen their skill set and be abreast with the evolving needs of the market. She says the MICE masterclass will be a refresher course and a learning curve for practitioners in the industry.
Linda Pereira is the senior partner and CEO of the L&I Communications Group. In addition to her long and respected career as one of the most influential voices in the Meeting Industry, she is also Executive Director of CPL Meetings &Events. Respected internationally as a speaker, consultant, strategic communication expert, writer, and as an educator, she has been an invited speaker in over 149 countries on all continents.
She is an expert in communication and corporate diplomacy and has vast experience in cross-cultural communication strategies, localization, and public speaking and as a master of ceremonies. 
 
She has worked on the major events which marked the last 30 years of modern history, from World EXPOs, to Football and Sports Championships, various EU Presidencies and major political events.She is also an invited lecturer at five different international Universities where she lectures strategic meetings management and corporate diplomacy and protocol.
She is absolutely passionate about associations and sits on a variety of international association boards herself. Linda is also a consultant to a variety of international Governments and associations.She was considered one of Portugal’s five most influential people in the industry and has received various international education awards as well as the medal of honour for responsible entrepreneurship for her commitment to promoting culture and heritage and for Social Responsibility initiatives. 

Amanda Kotze-Nlapo opens up on the return of Meetings Africa

Ahead of the return of Africa’s premium MICE event, Meetings Africa scheduled to be held in South Africa from February 28-March 2, the Chief Convention Bureau Officer of the South African National Convention Bureau Mrs. Amanda Kotze-Nlapo outlines measures out in place to see the successful return of the event. She tells me showcasing to the world, Africa’s readiness to host the business and meetings industry is the central idea that underpins this year’s event.
Mrs Kotze-Nhlapo joined South African Tourism following a successful tenure at the Cape Town and Western Cape Convention Bureau where she held the position of head of the Bureau for six years. Amanda has 20 years of experience in the industry. 

Discovering West African Cuisines with Yasmine Fofana

My Guest today, Yasmine Fofana, a gastronomy content creator and storyteller discusses in detail her journey to becoming one of Africa’s leading voices in the promotion of culinary and its culture. She tells me about her new project with Africa No Filter as a narrative champion for the advancement of African gastronomy in francophone West Africa.
Yasmine Fofana is the pioneer when it comes to promoting the culinary scene of Côte d’Ivoire (West Africa). She did not only launch the 1st food blog of Côte d’Ivoire in 2012: “Journal d’une Foodie” now rebranded as “Afrofoodie”, but she also launched the 1st Restaurant week of Côte d’Ivoire: “Abidjan Restaurant Week”. Thanks to her continuous efforts in sharing Côte d’Ivoire culinary scene with the world, Yasmine was selected as a Mandela Washington Fellow under President Obama’s Young Africa Leaders Initiative in 2016 and a Chevening Scholar in 2017-2018.
For the past 10 years, her mission has been to shift the African narrative through its cuisine and promote Gastronomy tourism on the continent. Yasmine recently became an Africa No Filter narrative champion and is looking forward to exploring West African flavors .

Toni Ukachuwu discusses Walk for Love Africa Project

My conversation today is with CEO of Aviators Africa Toni Ukachuwu.Toni is leading an initiative dubbed walk for Love Africa. The project aims among other things to ramp up vaccination drive in Africa and also impress on African leaders to reduce bottlenecks that hamper intra Africa travel in the region.
Toni Ukachuwu is an experienced aviation, travel and tourism management professional with international exposure. He has more than 15years of experience and has provided strategic and people leadership for leading hospitality and aviation businesses in emerging markets. He possesses senior-level experience in media, Aviation, and marketing communications.
Toni is the publisher/ CEO of Aviators Africa, an integrated PR and marketing company that services the travel and tourism sectors.He also founded Aviators Africa Academy, a social enterprise that seeks to inspire and engage the next generation in aviation and Aerospace in Africa.
Toni is The founder of Walk for Love Africa. A pan African advocacy campaign initiative pushing for a connected and borderless Africa
 

Africa can drive tourism traffic with its unique Gastronomy offerings- Eric Pateman

In today’s episode, Eric Pateman, one of the world's leading culinary brand and marketing strategists, having written numerous culinary tourism and brand strategies for nations such as Canada and NZ is of the opinion that, gastronomy’s power in driving traffic to destinations especially in Africa has not been maximized enough to bring the much needed benefits to the community.
With over 25 years in business and the global hospitality industry, Eric is the nation’s leading ambassador for Canadian cuisine and one of the top international experts on culinary tourism, sharing his expertise with clients around the globe from the USA and the UK to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and beyond.
He is a storyteller for hundreds of artisan food companies, farmers, fishers, foragers and is known to bring together chefs and influencers from all aspects of the culinary world around the globe. With one of the most well-developed networks in the culinary world, Eric is constantly at the forefront of the global food movement.