East African Community Regional Tourism Expo (EARTE)
The first East African Regional tourism expo (EARTE) 2021 will be hosted in Tanzania in October 2021. EARTE is the first of its kind to be held in the region and will focus is promoting tourism attractions in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Southern Sudan.
Being held in the northern tourist circuit of Arusha from October 9 to October 16, the expo will be conducted on a rotational basis among the EAC member states, with the first three days devoted to the exhibition and four days to conducting familiarization trips and tours to major attraction sites Mainland and Zanzibar.
“The expo is expected to go a long way in reviving the EAC tourism following the unprecedented decline caused by Covid-19. It will bolster intra-regional tourism in addition to international tourism through the promotion of the tourism product offerings for the EAC Citizens,” said Christophe Bazivamo, Deputy Secretary-General in charge of productive and social sectors.
He added: “This will build upon previous efforts such as the decision by the council of ministers that partner states offer preferential rates for EAC citizens visiting public tourist attractions within the region, whereby they are charged rates that apply to the nationals.”
In July, this year, EAC ministers for wildlife and tourism approved the EAC marketing strategy for the 2021-2025 period.
A strategy aiming at the establishment of the tourism exhibition as a forum bringing state and non-state tourism actors to showcase their rich and diverse tourism attractions and investment opportunities in the region.
Promoting Tourism in East Africa
The choice of Arusha for the venue of the expo has been illuminated by the fact that the city is a tourism hub for Tanzania and it would be easily accessible by participants from all partner states.
The theme of the expo is “Promotion of Resilient Tourism for Inclusive Socio-economic Development.”, it is informed by the need to develop the tourism sector in a sustainable manner following the devastating impact on the sector by the pandemic.
Seminars
EARTE 2021 brings the world to you, and promotes the whole of the East African Region to the world, allowing you to explore a world full of opportunities, all under one Expo.
Every business that will be showcased in the forthcoming EARTE 2021 will be joining our unrivalled regional and worldwide network of quality tourism EXHIBITORS, INVESTORS and BUYERS who drive business opportunities from every corner of the world.
The EARTE 2021 programme includes five seminars addressing topics centered around tourism and wildlife managmenr in the EAC region. Seminars consist of a 45-minute presentation and time for questions and answers.
The travel and tourism sector, globally, was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic more than any other economic sector. Tanzania offered to hold the tourism expo in Arusha after Burundi stated that it was not ready to host the regional tourism expo for 2021.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report, the crash in international tourism due to the coronavirus pandemic could cause a loss of more than $4 trillion to the global GDP for the years 2020 and 2021.
