Ecotourism

[The Herald]WITH the clock ticking away slowly towards the first ever hosting of the world's biggest tourism event in Zimbabwe, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation General Assembly (August 24-29 2013), the tourism and hospitality industry in Victoria Falls has gone full swing in its preparations. (AllAfrica)

[Daily Trust]President Goodluck Jonathan has called on African leaders to pay full attention to the economic emancipation of their nations. Addressing the South African Parliament in Cape Town during his state visit, Jonathan said having successfully liberated the continent from colonialism, racism and apartheid, African leaders now ought to make strong economies and strengthen democratic governance. (AllAfrica)

[The Point]Eco-tourism contributes greatly to the development of tourism in this country. One such place that promotes this in The Gambia is Sandele Eco-Retreat, a beautiful sight to behold and a natural environment for attraction of both tourists and people in the area. (AllAfrica)

[The Herald]The tourism industry has raked in between US$700 million and US$800 million so far this year, a senior official has said. (AllAfrica)

[Zambia Reports]The Patriotic Front government has embarked on hurried last minute upgrades of lodges in Livingstone following concerns that the country is lagging behind in preparations for the UNWTO General Conference which the country is co-hosting with Zimbabwe. (AllAfrica)

[The Star]It was on a wet Saturday mid-morning that we set out for Kigio Wildlife Conservancy. The 3,500-acre conservancy is located about 120km from Nairobi and is situated between Naivasha and Gilgil. The conservancy was originally a cattle ranch owned by a colonial settler family. It was sold by the family to the local community who after a few years decided to forgo cattle ranching in favour of wildlife conservation with the help of conservationist Chris Campbell. (AllAfrica)

[Egypt Online]Egypt and Iraqi Kurdistan signed a cooperation protocol on means of promoting ties between the two sides, mainly in the field of tourism. Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou and Dilshad Shahab, Tourism Minister of Iraqi Kurdistan, signed the protocol, said a statement by Tourism Ministry. (AllAfrica)

[Zimbabwe Standard]THE Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry has secured prime land for a new "Victoria Falls City" in the resort town. (AllAfrica)

[SA Info]South Africa's Western Cape boutique hotels and guesthouses have seen a surge in investment by overseas buyers, according to Pam Golding Lodges and Guesthouses (PGLAG). (AllAfrica)

[The Star]MOST counties may not get their cash allocations on time unless they fulfill key requirements for the release of the funds. (AllAfrica)

[Zimbabwe Independent]GOVERNMENT has formed a United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Corporate Resources Mobilisation Trust to bolster shaky preparations for the conference which have been hit by serious funding problems as Treasury has failed to release the promised US$6,5 million to finance the event scheduled for August 24 - 29 at Victoria Falls. (AllAfrica)

[Egypt Online]A memorandum of understanding will be signed on Wednesday 3/4/2013 to launch a fund-raising campaign for the construction of Egypt's Grand Museum. (AllAfrica)

[Daily News]A team of people is writing a book on the native plants of coastal East Africa. (AllAfrica)

[Namibia Economist]Is the country spending enough and is the country spending well? These are the few questions that were discussed when the Economist caught up with Philip Schuler, Senior Country Economist for Namibia representing the World Bank. From the short parley the deficit spending of Namibia currently remains a disconcerting feeling amongst country observers. Schuler firstly noted that eyebrows are raised at the government concerning how it plans to pay off the money borrowed. Will it be able to generate enough reve (AllAfrica)

[Magharebia]The 4th International Festival of Sahara Tourism opened Sunday (March 10th) in Adrar, APS reported. The festival is aimed at promoting the desert region as a unique destination for visitors, Algerian Tourism Minister Mohamed Benmeradi said at the opening festivities. (AllAfrica)

[The Star]Operations at the Mombasa port returned to normal yesterday with transit cargo surging slowly after the country's elections. (AllAfrica)

[Tunis Afrique Presse]Tunis -An agreement on a donation worth 4.72 Million Dollars aimed to develop ecotourism in the most underprivileged regions in Tunisia, was signed Wednesday in Tunis between Investment and International Co-operation Minister Riadh Bettaieb and World Bank representative in Tunis Eileen Murray. (AllAfrica)

[Times of Zambia]AS preparations for the August 2013 United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly intensify, various stakeholders have continued to engage Government regarding the event. (AllAfrica)

[Tunis Afrique Presse]Tunis -Tourism professionals have launched an appeal to urgently save the sector, which accounts for 7% of the gross domestic product and employs 400 000 people. They also called for strengthening its position internationally. (AllAfrica)

[Capital FM]Nairobi -Business leaders are confident of good economic performance in the post election period of 2013 than they were last year, according to a new survey. (AllAfrica)

[The Star]The Central Bank of Kenya yesterday sought to mop up Sh10 billion from the money market using 14-day term auction deposits. The bank has been actively mopping up liquidity since last year to support the shilling against the dollar. (AllAfrica)

[CIO]Companies will differentiate themselves from their competitors by the way they handle their customer experience. (AllAfrica)

[Egypt Online]President Mohamed Morsi has decided to refer a draft law to restore the free zone in Port Said to the Shura Council, a presidential statement said Tuesday 19/2/2013. (AllAfrica)

[Egypt Online]Egypt's Communications and Information Ministry signed on Wednesday 20/2/2013 a cooperation protocol to develop the technological infrastructure of the Tourism Ministry to promote this vital sector, once a good source of Egypt's national income. Prime Minister Hisham Qandil attended the signing ceremony. (AllAfrica)

[Times of Zambia]THE media has been instrumental in providing information on the August 2013 United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly from the time a bid to co-host the event was won to-date. (AllAfrica)

[Times of Zambia]DEFENCE Minister Geoffrey Mwamba has assured that there will be maximum security in Livingstone during the August 2013 United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly. (AllAfrica)

[New Times]The five East Africa Community partner states of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi have so much in common that unification of the region makes a lot of sense. With the prospects of continued tourism growth in East Africa, the region is now marketed as a single tourist target. Hospitality and tourism industry is a leading employer and fastest developing segment worldwide. (AllAfrica)

[Cameroon Tribune]The Director General of the local chocolate producing company, IM. SO.FER. SA, Giovanni Schettino, yesterday, February 7, 2013 briefed the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Philemon Yang on the activities of his company whose Yaounde-based factory employs over 200 people. The company, started in 2005, is the branch of the Italian chocolate producing Ferrero Group. (AllAfrica)

[Times of Zambia]A local think-tank has said the lack of development on tourist sites and review of various institutional and legal frameworks have impeded the tourism a contribution to Zambia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). (AllAfrica)

[ANGOP]Luanda -The Environment Ministry, within the framework of its strategies, is since 2012 creating adequate infrastructures for the practice of ecotourism in the country's various national parks. (AllAfrica)

[The Star]Reluctance by banks to cut mortgage rates has created 'super-spreads' in the mortgage financing market, according to the latest report by HassConsult and The Mortgage Company. (AllAfrica)