Hotel Summit East Africa beats expectations

The recently concluded Hotel Summit East Africa, that ran in conjunction with the Kenya Hospitality Trade Fair, was termed a resounding success with over 150 participants from Kenya and the region, in

The recently concluded Hotel Summit East Africa, that ran in conjunction with the Kenya Hospitality Trade Fair, was termed a resounding success with over 150 participants from Kenya and the region, including nearly 20 Ugandan participants led by the chairman of the Uganda Hotel Owners Association B.M. Kibirige and the chairman of the Association of Uganda Tour Operators Boniface Byamukama.

Opened by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism and the national chairman of the Kenya Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the event has ran for three consecutive days. Visitors to the trade fair were in excess to 3.500, many of them buyers from not just Kenya, but neighbouring countries too. Key note speakers, that included Kenya Airwaysโ€™ Director of Marketing Chris Diaz, Mary Kimonye who is the CEO of Brand Kenya, Mikul Shah who is the CEO of EatOut Kenya and Catherine Gachie, Director of Barefoot Consulting, left a mark on the proceedings that spilled over into the coffee breaks and lunch session, as well as to the evening cocktails for follow up and networking among delegates, speakers and moderators.

Attendees came not just from hotels, lodges and coast based resorts, but also from a number of hospitality training institutions, hospitals, institutions of higher learning and schools, as well as the local and regional print and electronic media covering the event.

Next on the calendar will be the second edition of the Africa Hotel Investment Forum, due to take place in September at the InterContinental Hotel, to which the organizers decided to return since the inaugural edition last year was such an overwhelming success. Clearly, Kenya, as the regional market leader, is not only in demand but seen as a key hospitality investment destination now with all the big international chains which are not yet represented with a property in Nairobi, are pushing into the market.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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