New York hosts tourism seminar.(Business Travel)

THE AFRICA TRAVEL Association and the Corporate Council on Africa are sponsoring the first US-Africa Tourism and Sports Seminar in New York City. In association with the New York Times Travel Show 2008, the seminar will join more than 200 public and private sector leaders from the travel industry in Africa, North America, Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean to focus on infrastructure development and investment opportunities in African tourism.

"In addition to being home to some of the globe's most spectacular world wonders, Africa offers natural landscapes of all kinds," says CCA President Stephen Hayes. "With improving infrastructure and growing private sector and consumer purchasing power, Africa is poised to increase its world market share in tourism in the coming years."

Sub-Saharan Africa currently accounts for less than two per cent of the global market for travel and tourism, or about US$90bn in 2007. The ATA/CCA seminar entitled "Making Africa the World's Next Premier Travel Destination" is meant to help boost this to more than US$185bn in the next seven years.

Ministers of Tourism and Culture are expected to join travel agents and tour operators along with airline and hotel representatives, sport marketing firms, real estate developers, and business and financial leaders at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City 27-28 February. "Now, more than ever, the governments of many Africa countries have dedicated resources to turn tourism into one of the motors driving their economic development," says ATA Executive Director Edward Bergman.