East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 11th October, 2021: The President of Zanzibar and Chairman of the Revolutionary Council, H.E. Dr. Hussein Mwinyi, has called upon EAC Partner States to develop a coordinated approach that will be instrumental in overcoming the challenges facing the tourism sector occasioned by the outbreak of COVID-19.
Speaking during the closing ceremony of the 1st EAC Regional Tourism Expo 2021 at the TGT Grounds in Arusha, Tanzania, President Mwinyi said Partner States should continuously refine national policies and devise new programmes to deliver responsible, inclusive and sustainable tourism products that will attract more visitors from all over the world.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 9th October, 2021: East African Community Partner States lost 92% revenues in the tourism sector due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Making the disclosure, EAC Secretary General Hon. (Dr.) Peter Mathuki said that tourist arrivals to the region fell from 6.98 million arrivals in before the pandemic to 2.25 million arrivals occasioning the losses, adding that the tourism sector was the worst hit by the pandemic.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 7th October, 2021: Tourism players are upbeat of the sector’s recovery in the region, with the upcoming 1st EAC Regional Tourism EXPO already attracting over 2,000 visitors from across the globe and 100 exhibitors confirming their participation at the TGT grounds in Arusha, Tanzania.
The expo set for 9th to 11th October 2021, aims at creating awareness on tourism investment opportunities amid the pandemic and promote EAC as a single tourism destination. Currently, EAC Partner States’ Ministers of Tourism and Government officials from Botswana, Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of Congo have confirmed their participation.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 10th September, 2021:The 1st EAC Regional Tourism EXPO will be held from 9th to 11th October, 2021 in Arusha, Tanzania.
The United Republic of Tanzania in conjunction with the EAC Secretariat will host the three-day EXPO. It will be followed by a familiarization trip for hosted international buyers and media to some of the iconic tourist sites in the region from 12th to 16th October, 2021. As a region, East Africa is endowed with a unique combination of tourist attractions comprising tropical beaches, abundant wildlife in natural habitats, scenic beauty and a geographically diverse landscape that spark imagination.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 16th July, 2021:The East African Community Sectoral Council on Tourism and Wildlife Management has approved the EAC Regional COVID-19 Tourism Recovery Plan that seeks to revive the sector that has been badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Ministers who met virtually under the chairmanship of Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife, Hon. Najib Balala, noted that some EAC Partner States had already instituted measures such as the formulation of stimulus packages aimed at re-igniting the sector and supporting tourism investments in the region including the Small and Micro Enterprises
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 25 September 2020: The East African Community (EAC) joins the rest of the world in celebrating the World Tourism Day, celebrated on the 27th of September every year. Themed “Tourism and Rural Development”, the official 2020 celebration will be held on Monday, 28 September at 15:00 (CEST), in a two-hour virtual session.
Nowhere else in the world is this year’s theme more fitting than the EAC Partner States, as most of the tourism products in the region are mainly nature based and thus found in the rural areas. The EAC region largely depends on national parks and reserves, as well as wildlife conservancies that traverse the entire region.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 21st October, 2019: The EAC Secretariat participated at the 3-day Swahili International Tourism Expo (SITE) which took place at the Milimani City Conference Hall in Dar-es-Salaam ; Tanzania, from 18th to 20th October, 2019.
Officiating the opening of the exhibition, the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism; Hon. Dr. Hamisi Kigwangalla began by welcoming all exhibitors, visitors and international stakeholders to the event. He commended the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism for their successful efforts in organizing the 5th SITE, 2019 in collaboration with the Tanzanian Tourism Board and other key stakeholders within the tourism sector including the EAC Tourism Department.
EAC Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 8th November 2017:
H.E Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda on Monday 6th November, 2017, toured the EAC Partner States stand at the World Travel Market (WTM) and recognized the joint tourism promotion efforts by the Partner States. The President was at the World Tourism Market to receive his World Tourism Awards given in recognition of his efforts to foster sustainable tourism development in Rwanda. The award exemplified the commitment by East African leaders in promoting sustainable tourism.
Meanwhile, the EAC High Commissioners/ Ambassadors in London, Heads of Tourism Boards for Partner States, and the Secretariat staff held a pre- WTM meeting on 5th November 2017 at the Uganda High Commission premises.
East African Community Secretariat; Arusha, Tanzania; 10 April 2017:| The Deputy Secretary General in charge of Productive and Social Sectors, Hon. Christophe Bazivamo, has commended the EAC Partner States for their willingness to promote Tourism and Wildlife Management sector in a coordinated manner as illustrated by their renewed commitment in supporting regional tourism development and wildlife conservation, in the overall context advancing the EAC integration agenda.
The Deputy Secretary General, who was addressing Partner States’ delegates attending the just concluded 7th Meeting of the Sectoral Council on Tourism and Wildlife Management in Kampala, Uganda, reiterated the need to continuously market the region as a single destination and the need for the region to enhance its marketing strategies not only internationally but also regionally.
