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South African Tourism sets sights on Arabian Tourism markets to boost sector recovery
South African Tourism continues to find strategic opportunities to fast-track the sector’s tourism recovery. The Arabian Travel Market is one platform, as it brings together global tourism decision-makers, industry experts and thought leaders to unlock the sector’s potential.
Now in its 30th year, the tradeshow will take place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 1 to 4 May 2023.
Zinhle Nzama, the Acting Chief Convention Bureau Officer at South African Tourism says that South Africa’s presence at the Arabian Tourism Market “marks a significant milestone in South Africa’s journey towards economic revival and tourism rebound.”
“Participating at this trade show is a great opportunity that cannot be missed,” Nzama said matter-of-factly.
She added: “It was critical for us to return to ATM again because last year was a huge success for the exhibitors that attended, and ultimately a big win for South Africa’s tourism sector. Last year, the South African delegation came back with over 37 leads, most of which were converted into business.”
As part of ATM last year, South African Tourism entered into an MoU with Emirates Airlines which has, amongst others, seen the airline flying 49 weekly flights into South Africa. These numbers are at pre-pandemic levels and signify how South African Tourism continues to leverage these international trade shows.
This year, South African Tourism is taking 19 exhibitors to ATM, including 14 products and experiences and 5 SMMEs.
“Our exhibitors are carefully selected to ensure that they specifically meet the needs and preferences of the Middle Eastern travellers looking to come and explore South Africa,” adds Nzama.
She said tourism is a vital part of South Africa’s economic recovery grand plan dubbed the South African Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan.
She emphasized, “International travel and tourism trade shows provide an opportunity for South African tourism enterprises of varying sizes to strike impactful, lasting partnerships and even ink fruitful collaboration contracts.”
“We are committed to diligently executing our strategies to achieve the ambitious targets we have set ourselves, including 21 million arrivals by 2030 as per the National Development Plan’s (NDP) injunction,” she stated.
In 2022, tourism contributed 3.7% towards South Africa’s GDP, surpassing agriculture, utilities, and construction contributions.
Tourism also plays a vital role in providing sustainable employment opportunities. As per the 2021 employment statistics, the travel and tourism sector in South Africa employed nearly 1.08 million people.
According to Nzama, the Arabian Tourism Market presents a significant chance for South Africa to promote its destination directly to its important source markets in Asia, Australia, and the Middle East.
The region, she revealed, has seen healthy incoming visitor numbers in recent years, which South Africa aims to cultivate and nurture.
She added that last year, “South Africa attracted 5.7 million incoming international visitors between January and December 2022.”
The latest numbers from the Middle East indicate a strong recovery in tourism. In December 2022, there was a significant increase of 223.1% compared to the previous year, with a total of 40,628 arrivals.
Israel was the most significant source market, with 17,427 visitors, followed by Saudi Arabia with 11,464 and the United Arab Emirates with 3,100.
Other countries in the region also contributed a healthy 8,637 visitors
South Africa, Nzama added, believes that there is more room for growth not just in this region’s contribution but in the overall global figure of wanderlust-seekers who heed its message to come to South Africa and “Live Again.”
International trade shows such as ATM are part of the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) sector, which South Africa has identified as one of the growth levers in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era.
President John Dramani Mahama has commissioned four career diplomats as ambassador-designates to represent Ghana in four countries.
The commissioning ceremony took place on Friday, October 16, 2026.
The new envoys are Her Excellency Nana Antwiwaa Dodoo, Ambassador-Designate to Angola; His Excellency Louis Kwame Obeng, Ambassador-Designate to Qatar; Her Excellency Evelyn Korantemaa Ofosu-Amable, Ambassador-Designate to Israel; and His Excellency Jedidiah Reuben Adogla, Permanent Representative-Designate to Switzerland.
President Mahama charged them to advance Ghana’s national interests through strategic partnerships, economic diplomacy, investment mobilization, and expanded access to international markets.
He said Ghana’s diplomatic engagements must deliver tangible economic benefits, create jobs, and strengthen the country’s standing on the international stage.
The four envoys are career diplomats with over 27 years of experience.
On behalf of her colleagues, Her Excellency Nana Antwiwaa Dodoo thanked the President for the confidence reposed in them and pledged their commitment to emulate his leadership and deliver on the mandate given to them.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The professor who spends his days exploring the intricacies of African languages found himself at the centre of a different kind of lesson on Friday, October 2, 2026. 
This time, there were no lecture notes, academic arguments or university classrooms. Instead, there was the weight of tradition, the rhythm of a community celebration and the solemnity of an oath at a royal palace.
Professor Ọbádélé Kambon, a full Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Ghana, was enstooled as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene of Akuapem Mampong in the Eastern Region in a ceremony that brought academia and traditional authority together.
For the professor, the occasion was more than a new title. It was a moment that connected his academic interests in African languages and indigenous knowledge with the living traditions of an Akan community.
The day’s events unfolded through a series of customary observances. Kambon was first taken to the compounds of the Ɔkyeamehene and Gyasehene, where the preparations for his installation continued.
Then came the application of hyire, the white kaolin powder associated with traditional rites.
With the customary proceedings underway, the new chief was lifted onto the shoulders of celebrants and carried along the main thoroughfare of Akuapem Mampong.
The procession transformed the streets into a public stage for a ceremony rooted in the community’s traditional institutions.
There was something striking about the image, a university professor, accustomed to the measured language of academic discourse, being carried through the town in a display of traditional recognition.
Yet the celebration was not complete with the procession.
A ram was sacrificed at the Mamponghene’s compound before Kambon was taken to the palace, to swear the oath associated with his new offices.
The ceremony brought him formally into his roles as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene.
Beyond the colourful proceedings, the titles themselves carry layers of historical meaning.
Kambon in his research explores the historical connections between Apagya and Akan political and military organisation.
Accounts cited in his work linked Apagya to an asafo, or military company, while historical writing traces an Apagya stool in Asante to the reign of Opoku Ware I in the eighteenth century.
These historical associations offer a glimpse into the institutions that have shaped Akan society over generations, although they do not automatically define the precise responsibilities of the office in Akuapem Mampong.
Kambon’s own professional life reflects a similar interest in preserving and examining African knowledge.
His work encompasses Akan language structure, naming practices across the Black world, proverbs and indigenous intellectual traditions.
Through Abibitumi, the platform he founded, he also promotes language learning, scholarship and cultural engagement.
But tradition was only one part of the story that day.
When the formal ceremony gave way to a reception, the occasion expanded into a celebration of three milestones: Kambon’s enstoolment, his promotion to full professor and his daughter Ama’s admission to the University of Ghana.
The gathering therefore carried a personal significance that went beyond the honours bestowed on one man. 
It celebrated professional advancement, the continuation of family aspirations and a connection to cultural heritage.
For a father, seeing a daughter gain admission to the same university where he holds a distinguished academic position offered another reason to celebrate.
For the professor, the moment placed family achievement alongside his own professional and traditional milestones.
Kambon had already established a place in the traditional life of Akuapem Mampɔn through an earlier installation as Banmuhene Kyidɔmhene, recorded in 2017.
His latest enstoolment adds another chapter to that relationship.
In Akuapem Mampɔn, the day brought together the university, the palace and the family table in one celebration. And for Kambon, the journey from the lecture room to the traditional procession showed how scholarship, cultural responsibility and family achievement could converge in a single memorable occasion.
By Enoch Ntiamoah Siaw
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