Akwaaba Travel Market Unveils Strategies to Grow Tourism in Africa

On the 15th September 2025, industry leaders, policymakers, investors, and travel enthusiasts will gather at the Eko Hotels and Suites Convention Centre in Lagos to share insights, profile country-specific strategies and chart the way forward for a more connected and vibrant African tourism market. 

The upcoming African Tourism Conference at the 21st Akwaaba African Travel Market will serve as a platform to examine these efforts in depth—unpacking what has worked, what has not and the lessons learned along the way. 
The organiser of Akwaaba Travel Market, Ikechi Uko, said: “With a population of 1.4 billion across 54 nations, Africa receives fewer than 100 million tourists annually. Yet, the potential for growth is immense. If each African country could generate between 10 per cent and 20 per cent of its population as domestic tourists and share just five per cent as intra-African travellers, the continent would witness a thriving tourism economy capable of transforming local communities and industries.”
According to Uko, “Since the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, Africa has awakened to the opportunities offered by domestic tourism. Kenya’s Tembea Kenya campaign emerged as an early success story, followed by South Africa’s Sho’t Left initiative and Nigeria’s Naija7Wonders.”
The organiser disclosed that the African Tourism Conference would feature keynote speaker Ms. Lilly Ajarova, Senior Presidential Advisor for Tourism, Uganda. Before her appointment, she served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB).