The VA TourismPodcast

New Documentary: 14 Wild Days Of Rediscovering The Pearl of Africa by ''The Best Job Ever'' Crew

In this episode, My guests four young travel content creators and storytellers from Uganda, Jonathan Benaiah, Brian Jonathan, Charles Mwesiga, and Brian Ahereza delve into their latest piece of work dubbed ‘’the Best Job Ever’’ tourism documentary which chronicles 14 days on the round in the pearl of Africa, Uganda.
Jonathan Benaiah - Executive ProducerBest known by his nickname, “The Ugandan Tourist”, Jonathan Benaiah was born and raised in Uganda’s capital, Kampala but has roots in western Uganda. A very experienced traveller, both locally and internationally, Benaiah developed a deep-rooted love for Africa's wild places. With years of experience of working in the tourism sector, he prides in curating PR and Marketing material for the digital space; including producing and directing a number of tourism short films like "The Heartbeat of Safari” and “Visit Uganda Tomorrow”. His latest project is a Post-COVID tourism documentary dubbed “The Best Job Ever”, a heartrending film that weaves together the stirring true story of four youthful Ugandan men on a 14 wild days’ and 4000 kilometre discovery odyssey through the country’s wild side in unprecedented times. He is also a seasoned nature photographer and travel writer contributing to a number of local and international publications.
Brian O. Jonathan - Aerial PhotographerBrian has his origins in the untapped northern part of Uganda. He is an accomplished aerial photographer, who loves tourism to the marrow. Although he is the Managing Director of Braca Tours & Travel Limited, Brian prefers to be out in the field in a 4X4 tourist safari vehicle, then back at the desk in his Entebbe office. During the 14 days’ Roadtrip, the crew nicknamed him “Bushman” because of how he was able to provide stunning views with his quadcopter (drone) from points which were previously unreachable.
Charles Mwesigwa - Director of CastingCharles has worked in the tourism industry in Uganda for over 5 years, tailoring bespoke holidays and creating memories for countless tourists. He was born south of the Nile River where he grew up and later moved to the capital city to pursue a degree in tourism. He has been to every corner of Uganda but says he would do it 1001 times again. Charles’ planning, problem-solving and expert organisational skills made him the perfect campaign manager and Director of Casting for “The Best Job Ever” documentary.
Brian Ahereza - Director of PhotographyBrian was born and raised in the beautiful western part of Uganda. He is a graduate of tourism whose love for the true wild experience made him the African safari expert he is today. Through his passion for the African dirt road, GoExplore Safaris, an East African DMC was birthed, which is dedicated to personalising luxury journeys throughout the East African region. Brian is also an accomplished tourism content and branding professional. He was the man behind the wheels during “The Best Job Ever” campaign but still had to juggle the role of Director of Photography.

CEO of HATAB Lily Rakorang wants Government to extend Moratorium on Tourism Businesses in Botswana

In this episode (#17), my Guest Lilly Rakorang the CEO of the Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana (HATAB) wants the Government to extend the moratorium on tourism-related businesses to mitigate the financial distress industry players are going through. She discusses the country’s domestic tourism push and lessons learned during this pandemic.
 

Tourism News Wrap 16

The VA #TourismNewsWrap16 is a 360 roundup of the latest news in the Travel and Tourism sector. It sums up what you missed the previous week. The video captures, in brief, the major stories. Headlines: •Tunisia Gets New Tourism Minister //Africa Showcase Goes Live //Airlines resume passenger flight services to Accra //South Africa launches Tourism Month// Nose By set October.1 for Reopening// More news on www.voyagesafriq.com 

CEO of Africa Tourism Association Naledi Khabo opens up on ATA's new Direction

My Guest, Naledi Khabo -CEO of the Africa Tourism Association shed more light on the Association’s efforts in positioning the continent in the minds of travelers as well as initiatives she has put in place to encourage diasporan travel to the region since she took over as the head of the American based Association.
Naledi K. Khabo is a corporate strategy leader with 20+ years’ experience within Operations, Marketing & Technology. Having developed and implemented countless global innovative multimedia brand initiatives, she possesses a rare combination of exceptional business and technology acumen and the ability to translate complex technical concepts for practical business applications. 
Naledi currently serves as chief executive at the Africa Tourism Association (ATA), a global trade association promoting travel and tourism to Africa and strengthening intra-Africa partnerships. ATA serves both the public and private sectors of the international travel and tourism industry.  Naledi is passionate about the intersection of marketing and emerging technologies and is excited about this intersection and great opportunities within the tourism sector. Her diverse background lends a fresh perspective to ATA’s approach to promoting tourism to and within Africa.
During her short tenure at ATA, Naledi has led the organization through significant operational changes including a complete re-branding of the organization and launching several new digital platforms to serve the hospitality and tourism industry, including 'thexchange.africa' which was recently launched in response to the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the hospitality, tourism, and meetings industry.

Conversation with Megan Oberholzer of World Travel Market-Africa

In this episode, (#15) the Director of Travel, Tourism and Creative Industries at Reed Exhibitions, Organizers of World Travel Market-Africa Megan Oberholzer, narrates the extremely challenging situations having to deal with suppliers following the cancellation of this year’s World Travel Market Africa as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. She also outlines incentives for the travel trade and specifically Tourism SMEs in next year’s edition.
Her role includes taking full accountability for the planning and operational management of all aspects of the portfolio, contributing significantly to the development and implementation of Reed’s strategy and to deliver exceptional performance through effective collaboration, management and development of others.
As part of Megan’s role, she builds closer relationships with the key players within the industry and gaining a broader insight into the fundamental issues affecting each show’s industries.
After almost 8 years working in Marketing with Tourvest, Megan joined Reed Exhibitions in 2015 as the Marketing Manager for WTM Africa and IBTM Africa where she oversaw and drove world-class branding and communications for two successful travel trade exhibitions. In 2017, Megan then assumed the role of General Marketing Manager adding the brand ILTM Africa to her portfolio. In this role, she passionately promoted the WTM Africa, ILTM Africa and IBTM Africa brands and oversaw all the events’ relative marketing aspects.
In May 2018, Megan was promoted to Portfolio General Manager for Reed Exhibitions South Africa’s Travel, Tourism and Sport department in which includes various dynamic trade and consumer shows namely; WTM Africa, ILTM Africa, IBTM Africa and FIBO Global Fitness Africa. Following a year as GM, Megan was made Portfolio Director in May 2019.Megan and her team passionately use the exhibition and eventing platforms to create opportunities for Travel & Tourism industry brands to market their products and services to a captive audience through face to face interaction using all of the 5 senses.

South African Multi Award Winning Songstress Simphiwe Dana talks rejection, self love and Arts as Pulse of every Nation

In this episode (#14), Simphiwe Dana a South African songstress and multi-international award winner believe music and tourism are natural bedfellows and if well harnessed can deliver the ultimate experience to the traveler. She has also through her music been a strong voice for feminism in the creative space. In an open conversation on the Tourism Podcast, the afrofuturist snd effervescent Xhosa music act said, ''for a country which has given so much to the music world, it was befitting to honor them with my music latest ''Bamako'' She also narrates how she led the church choir(group) at age 12 and finally gave her take on the impact of the coronavirus on the creative arts sector. Her unique combination  of Jazz, Afro-soul, Rap and Traditional music has seen her been hailed as the "new Miriam Makeba

Tourism News Wrap 15

The VA #TourismNewsWrap14 is a 360 roundup of the latest news in the Travel and Tourism sector. It sums up what you missed the previous week. The video captures, in brief, the major stories. Headlines;•UN Secretary-General underscores the importance of rebuilding tourism in a safe, equitable, and climate manner // Ethiopian Expands Its Global Hub - Bole International Airport with new Aviation Infrastructure // Tourism sector in Congo Brazzaville get set for Restart// 18 whales die in Mauritius stranding// More news on www.voyagesafriq.com 

Chenesai Mangoma identifies collaboration as a key ingredient in growing the Creative Economy

In this episode (#13), Chenesai Mangoma a trade lawyer and Creative economy strategist from Zimbabwe is leading advocacy for the development of a robust African creative economy strategy. Chenesai identifies collaboration as a key ingredient in growing the creative industry. She operates at the intersection of the creative industry, international trade, and human development. With several years of global experience in the business of fashion, trade and program/project development. She is the founder of Chenesai Africa, a fast-growing global entity premised on trade for development and currently leading the network building systems and processes in the creative industries of Zimbabwe towards increasing trade and investment in the sector. Chenesai has led multinational development investments and programs for UNDP, the British Council, and  HIVOs and at the National level has worked to establish the first creative Industries network of Zimbabwe. She is also a common purpose fellow and part of the BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt Responsible Leaders Network.