Aviation is always seen as a means of tourism development, as the fact resurfaced this week during the Akwaaba African Travel market, where experts highlighted the need for tourism growth and development, reports Chinedu Eze
Aviation and tourism experts, early this week, converged at the 22nd Akwaaba African Travel Market, which ended on September 15, 2026 in Lagos, to deliberate on ways that will further develop the two sectors, which arguably provide the most jobs in many economies after agriculture.
The key issues discussed at the meeting, were the promotion of enhanced intra-African travel, regional tourism integration, and domestic tourism development. Industry stakeholders focused on improving air access, reducing airfares, and building better transport networks across African nations to reduce reliance on international tourist arrivals from outside the continent.
The experts highlighted the positive impact of eased visa requirements—such as Kenya removing visa restrictions for Nigerian travelers—and urged more African countries to adopt similar policies under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Sessions at the meeting tackled challenges in African aviation, focusing on passenger rights during flight delays and cancellations to build consumer trust. Discussions also covered medical tourism, sports tourism, payment solutions, and the monetisation of travel content. In his presentation as key speaker at the conference, the President of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association of Nigeria (AOPA), Dr. Alex Nwuba, focused on the critical relationship between aviation and tourism. Nwuba noted that the aviation sector played a crucial role in boosting the economy through increased visitor arrivals. He urged African governments to systematically align their aviation policies to explicitly sustain and grow the tourism sector, pointing to successful continental models like Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways, and Royal Air Maroc.
Nwuba also spoke about the expensive aviation fuel, which inflate ticket prices. According to him, this makes traveling within Africa, especially Nigeria, unnecessarily expensive for tourists.
He therefore advocated for African countries to embrace the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), recommending that airlines in Africa build trust, eliminate fragmentation, form strategic alliances, and push for liberalised visa policies to allow the free movement of people across the continent.
Stronger Intra-African Tourism
In his speech at the 22nd Akwaaba African Travel Market, the Gambian Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Abdoulie Jobe, who led a high-powered delegation to aggressively market ‘Destination Gambia’ to Nigeria and the wider African continent, urged African governments to build effective policies and infrastructure to encourage Africans to travel within the continent.
Jobe emphasised that Africa must become its own tourism marketplace, reducing its heavy reliance on international arrivals by learning from the travel constraints experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. He reinforced the urgent need to have regional air access, introduce affordable airfares, facilitate easier visa regimes, and develop interconnected railway networks.
The minister described The Gambia as the “Smiling Coast of Africa,” and urged Nigerians to visit his country and have great experience.
He assured investors and travellers who may want to come to The Gambia that the country’s abundance of clean beaches, rich gastronomy, diverse wildlife, cultural heritage, and inimitable safety were irresistible.
He remarked that Nigeria and The Gambia share deep historical and cultural ties, which could be leveraged into shared economic wealth through increased movement of people
Jobe also called on the Nigerian tour operators, travel agencies, and aviation stakeholders, urging them not to view The Gambia simply as a holiday destination to sell, but as a strategic tourism partner. He challenged travel trade professionals to act as the “bridge” connecting the two nations to drive measurable business partnerships.
A major focal point for the Gambian delegation at Akwaaba 2026 was positioning the country as an emerging hub for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) in Africa. They marketed the country’s upgraded hospitality infrastructure and facilities as ideal for corporate gatherings, regional events, and business tourism.
The minister also met with Nigerian media and travel journalists and called on them to help reshape the narrative of the continent by telling authentic, positive African tourism stories—specifically highlighting The Gambia’s unique hospitality and cultural heritage.
Lack of Coordination
The President of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN), Aliyu Badaki, in his speech emphasised that the current state of tourism in the region stemed directly from a lack of coordinated and sustainable planning, noting that there is huge potential in tourism in Nigeria which remain unexplored.
He stated that African nations cannot continue operating under archaic frameworks while expecting modern economic returns. According to Badaki, unlocking the continent’s true potential demands deliberate public policy intervention, dedicated funding mechanisms, and structured collaboration between government authorities and private operators.
According to him, the private sector’s focus is now firmly fixed on a comprehensive transformation agenda designed to establish accountability, streamline regulatory approvals, and create an enabling environment where tourism businesses can scale sustainably.
Strategic Vision
Addressing the broader strategic vision for the sector, Nigeria’s Minister of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, stated that lack of data accuracy and technological integration were the missing links in Africa’s tourism evolution.
She remarked that effective governance and impactful advocacy were impossible without access to reliable, real-time statistics.
Musawa said the recent national digital initiatives, such as unified tourism applications were designed to consolidate information on travel offerings, heritage sites, and local services across all sub-regions in Africa.
She noted that by creating centralized digital hubs, destination marketers and investors could gain precise insights into traveller behaviour, resource availability, and market opportunities.
She noted that digital tools and robust data gathering would serve as critical bridges connecting the various sub-sectors of the travel economy, from transportation and lodging to arts and culinary tourism, positioning Africa as a globally competitive market ready for dynamic economic expansion.
By facilitating easier transit, synchronized visa policies, and joint marketing campaigns, African nations can retain valuable travel capital within the continent while showcasing their shared culinary, artistic, and historical assets, she said.
Lagos as Gateway
In her speech on tourism, regional unity, and youth development, the wife of the governor of Lagos State, Dr. Claudiana Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, described Nigeria as a strategic gateway. She emphasised that Nigeria remained the primary gateway into the global black community and underscored the necessity of robust travel markets to bridge different business entities within the tourism sector.
She called for continental cooperation and advocated for greater economic and cultural cooperation across West Africa and the wider African continent, pointing out that the global South is increasingly looking toward the region for partnership.
She spoke about ‘My City App’ and said that it remained a vital tool for tourists and stakeholders to easily navigate and access information about various local tourism hubs, cities, and opportunities across Nigeria.
The governor’s wife also reaffirmed the state’s commitment to positioning Lagos as a primary hub for business, entertainment, and cultural investment.
She noted that initiatives integrating local culture such as regional culinary showcases like the celebrated ‘Jollof Rice War’, would play a vital role in preserving social history while generating tangible economic opportunities for local micro-enterprises.
By linking the creative arts, hospitality, and corporate travel, destination managers can build multifaceted travel ecosystems that attract continuous domestic and foreign investment.
Sustaining the Vision
In his speech, the founder of the Akwaaba African Travel Market, Ambassador Ikechi Uko, reminisced the efforts made, the milestones and the impact of the over two decades of promoting travel in Africa.
He noted that the Akwaaba’s core mission remained focused on empowering young operators, opening global market access for local travel firms, and championing intra-African connectivity.
Boosting Regional Connectivity
The speeches at the conference focused on boosting regional connectivity, intra-African travel, and sustainable domestic tourism.
The meeting highlighted the vulnerability of relying solely on international visitors post-COVID-19, leaders emphasized pivoting toward robust domestic and regional tourism markets within Africa.
Opening remarks called on the African Union (AU) to streamline border policies and ease visa restrictions to enable smoother, barrier-free travel for Africans within the region.
Speakers at the conference advocated for the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) and discussions on passenger rights was a dominant theme. Aviation and tourism leaders took the stage to address the structural bottlenecks slowing down intra-Africa travel.
They brought to the fore, the issues affecting intra air travel in Africa and emphasised that all states should liberalise visa rules, insisting that visa free policy for Africans will promote intra Africa tourism.
The stakeholders emphasised that the full operationalisation of SAATM was no longer optional if initiatives like the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) were to succeed.
Multilateral Engagements
Tourism ministers and heads of delegations, including a prominent representation from The Gambia Tourism Board, led by Tourism Minister Abdoulie Jobe, pointed out that connecting African cities directly was vital for boosting cross-border business events, tourism, and trade. They called for shifting from restrictive bilateral air service agreements to open, multilateral engagements under SAATM rules A major talking point during the aviation sessions focused on lowering the cost of flying within West Africa to stimulate demand; removing immigration barriers to make more poepl to travel across Africa. This will help to promote tourism in the continent.
Also, panelists at the meeting discussed recent regional milestones, such as ECOWAS’s directive to scrap air transport taxes and slash aviation charges by 25 per cent starting January 2026. Speakers argued that lowering these financial barriers directly aligns with SAATM’s goals to make regional skies accessible and affordable.
Furthermore, dedicating sessions to passenger rights underscored the need to create a reliable ecosystem that builds traveler confidence across African carriers.
To turn SAATM into a commercial success, African airlines must collaborate rather than compete destructively. This is very important because many stakeholders are of the view that one major reason why air travel is not growing in Africa is because African airlines use their governments to undermine fair airline competition, thus evoking diplomatic animosity between nations.
During the Tour Operators Summit and airline panels, industry icons and executives from top regional airlines pushed for deeper commercial alliances. They noted that while governments could sign SAATM treaties, it is up to the private sector- airlines, travel agents, and operators, to build interline agreements, codeshares, and joint packages that seamlessly move passengers across African region.
This year’s event was another successful meeting, where critical issues were brought to the front burner. Aviation and tourism hold the key to Africa’s economic emancipation, job creation and greater cooperation.