Africa Travel Association postpones tourism conference

The Africa Travel Association (ATA) has postponed the 41st Annual World Tourism Conference to the first half of 2017.

Stephen Hayes, president and CEO at Corporate Council on Africa, said the decision to delay the event – due to be held in Kigali, Rwanda earlier this month – was to expand its reach and overall impact.

“While we are pleased with the very high calibre of the conference and the participation, circumstances have come about that present a far greater opportunity to expand the importance and reach of this event by combining our efforts with others in such a way that can have significant impact on US-Africa cooperation in tourism and the sectors that make tourism an important sector on the Continent,” he said.

“The decision to postpone was a joint decision by our partner, the Rwanda Development Board. Though we are not at liberty to announce details at this time, we remain committed to Rwanda and we will send an announcement of the new dates very soon.

“We are confident that our decision is the right one and that it will prove to be in the best interests of all concerned. Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to a successful conference in Rwanda in 2017.”