The VA TourismPodcast

⁠Countdown to 2nd UN Tourism Brand Africa Conference: ZTA Chief shares insights

Ahead of the 2nd UN Tourism Conference on Brand Africa scheduled to be held from 22-24 July in Livingstone, Zambia, I caught up with the CEO of the Zambia Tourism Agency Matongo Matamwandi to give me a sneak peek of the gathering. He tells me the Tourism Board CEO’s Think Tank and the launch of the UN Tourism Doing Business Investing in Zambia Guidelines will be major highlights of the 2-day event.
 

Nigeria's Minister of Tourism Lola Ade-John on her vision for the sector

In today’s episode, Nigeria’s Minister of Tourism Lola Ade-John reveals her plans to use the technology to transform the country’s tourism sector. Attending UN Tourism event for the first time in Barcelona, Spain she added that, her ministry is working closely with her counterpart at culture to leverage Nigeria's rich cultural heritage.

Professor Bhaso Ndzendze dissects the Africa by Bus Project and its Impacts on Students

My conversation today is with Professor Bhaso Ndzendze an Associate Professor of international Relations at the University of Johannesburg, where he is also Vice-Dean of Internationalisation in the Faculty of Humanities. He discusses the Africa by Bus project which he says combines cultural immersion and academic engagements to enhance the learning skills of students.
 
 

Our new convention centre will make Malawi a competitive MICE Destination- Sunbird Tourism PLC

My conversation is with Temwa Kanjadza, Head of Sales Marketing and Distribution at Malawi’s Sunbird Tourism PLC. Temwa gives an overview of the hotel group’s incredible role in Malawi’s tourism sector and reveals the hotel’s latest announcement, the construction of its state-of-the-art convention centre and its MICE focus for the domestic and regional markets.

Destination Malawi: Sigelege Hotels' ambitious plans of becoming Malawi's Premier Hospitality Group

In our special coverage of Destination Malawi, I spoke with the General Manager of Sigelege Resorts, Farai Marara. Farai discusses the hospitality sector in Malawi and reveals the vision of the hotel group to further its footprint in Malawi.
An achievement oriented and transformational leader. Seasoned hotelier with remarkable attention to detail and excellent customer engagement skills. Passionate about innovation, sustainability, coaching and mentoring teams to optimal performance levels. With over 15 years of extensive experience in the hospitality industry. Farai Marara has successfully overseen the operations of both city hotels and resorts in Zimbabwe, Botswana and Malawi, consistently achieving remarkable growth, profitability, and guest satisfaction ratings.
 

PayChangu's seamless and secure payment gateway for Malawi's Tourism Sector

Today’s episode was recorded at this year’s Malawi International Tourism Expo in Lilongwe. VoyagesAfriq’s content editor Samuel Obeng Appah sat down with Noma Moyo, a Sales executive at Pay Changu, a Malawian FinTech startup. She says the Company’s objective is to help fix the payment challenges in Malawi of which the tourism sector is heavily affected. She believes their payment gateway will enhance the services offered by the destination.

Unpacking the works of Africa's Eden Tourism Association :Exclusive Chat with CEO Jillian Blackbeard

My conversation today is an exclusive chat with the CEO of Africa's Eden Tourism Association, Jillian Blackbeard. She tells me the main objective of Africa’s Eden is to drive travel and tourism that positively contribute to society and the local/regional economy. Africa’s Eden is a private sector-driven organisation representing Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, undertaking an ambitious destination marketing strategy and campaign at all levels of the tourism supply chain.
 
Jillian's passion lies in African tourism and Conservation, she has been leading the industry for over 10 years specifically in marketing, first for a Southern African hotel and resort chain, followed by 5 years as director for marketing and product development at Botswana Tourism Organisation, followed by Director for Africa for The World Travel and Tourism Association. She is now the CEO of Africa's Eden Tourism Association, the first purely private sector driven organisation representing Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, undertaking an ambitious destination marketing strategy and campaign at all levels of the tourism supply chain. Jillian's passions extend to conversation, managing the Tlhokomela Endangered Wildlife Trust for 5 years and continues to support projects that link tourism with conservation. Over the past years, she has spoken at international conferences and events on the importance of intra-African travel and opportunities and challenges for the sector across the African continent.

Botswana set to roll out MICE Strategy : Acting CEO, Keitumetse Setlang

In today’s episode, the Acting CEO of Botswana Tourism Organization Keitumetse Setlang at the recent WTM Africa show in Cape Town revealed the ambitious Strategy for Diversification and Growth for the Southern African Nation. She also gave an update on the country’s MICE Strategy which she describes as cardinal to their tourism drive