ITIC Ltd – International Tourism and Investment Conference – has announced a strategic alliance with WTM Africa (World Travel Market Africa) owned by Reed Exhibitions, leveraging each companies’ strengths and commitment to propel growth in travel and tourism through innovation in products, destination marketing and investment in sustainable development and infrastructure.
ITIC and WTM Africa will host the virtual African Tourism Investment Summit, which forms part of Africa Travel Week from the 7 – 9 April, and a further virtual event on 24 June 2021 to assist African countries, as well as worldwide delegates and clients, in their ambition to achieve their objectives and future growth potential.
The overall theme for the Conference series will be Africa: Post Covid-19 Investment Opportunities in Sustainable Tourism, covering the major aspects of the sector with an approach of ‘THINK TOURISM 360°’. The Conference is designed to be the first in a series of virtual summits starting on 7 April and will feature a Ministerial Roundtable with senior government speakers representing African nations, featuring three topics covering re-setting business financing, travel and health in the post Covid-19 era and new project investment opportunities. Each session in April will be a teaser and introduction for the Second Africa Virtual Tourism Investment Summit to be held on the 24 June 2021.
As part of Africa Travel Week Connect in the City, which will be an in-person event from 1 to 3 September in Cape Town, Africa Tourism Investment Summit and ITIC will host a deal room. On 2 September, project owners, investors and financiers will have the opportunity to meet in person with selected participants to showcase their development projects and funding requirements to prospective funders.
ITIC is a leader in providing B2B travel investment conferences and has developed as a specialised global tourism investment platform that brings together investors, financial and legal services, technology experts, government tourism ministers, tourism and travel industry leaders and professionals, policy makers and public and private project owners and developers to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.
The company’s objective through its conferences is to unlock a diversity of investment and business opportunities in tourism and travel destinations around the world that can be aligned with the UN 2030 Agenda – Sustainable Development Goals.
Chairman of ITIC and former Secretary-General of UNWTO, Dr Taleb Rifai said: “Such an alliance between the WTM Africa and ITIC with their complementary services will inevitably present significant opportunities for the tourism and travel industry in the continent.”
This series of virtual and live conferences are designed to stand out as a sought-after platform to stimulate a new thought process focusing and discussing key global tourism challenges, business and investment opportunities in the sector with a special focus on Africa and its island destinations.
The conferences will also help drive international awareness and investments in Africa and surrounding Island destinations as well as act as a catalyst for growth. These will attract private equity firms, institutional investors, fund managers and influencers, who have the power to channel capital and to raise funds by using key regional Stock Exchanges to raise and structure funds to invest in live and bankable tourism projects.