East Africa tourism investors bet on conferences to lift sector fortunes

East Africa tourism investors bet on conferences to lift sector fortunes

Tourism players in the East African region are banking on the recovering conferences sub-sector to stabilise earnings, following three difficult years of Covid-19 and other global crises.

In the region, Rwanda could be on track to become a regional hub for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions/Events) with the country earning $ 62.4 million in 2022 from hosting 104 events. This was a growth from $12.5 million in 2021, signaling a strong recovery from the pandemic.

While several countries in Africa are popular for MICE including South Africa, Morocco and Egypt; in East Africa, Kigali is now competing with Kenya and Tanzania which have a better-developed MICE industry, stronger air connectivity and tourism infrastructure with diverse wildlife and natural attractions.

In fact, Kenya’s own sector is showing signs of recovery with stakeholders diversifying more to reap from MICE.

According to a May 2023 National Bureau of Statistics report, the number of conferences, delegates and bed occupancy at hotels have increased.

The report indicates that the number of local conferences in 2020 were at 1,176, as it hosted just 28 international meetings. Those local meetings have since jumped to 8117 while international conferences reached 292 in 2021.

And despite countries generally easing their Covid-19 protocols, the number