Namibia hosted its 11th Annual Namibia Tourism Expo, June 2 to 5, drawing more than 18,800 people over four days. Nearly 450 exhibitors participated, including Southern Africa destinations Botswana, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Other exhibitors included Air Namibia; the cities of Windhoek, Swakopmund and Walvis Bay; and Legacy and Protea Hotels. Lodges, tented camps and individual properties exhibiting included Ecolodgistix, Gondwana Collection, Leading Lodges of Africa, Namibia Country Lodges, Namibia Wildlife Resorts, Big Sky Lodge, Kalahari Sands, Kalahari Red Dunes Lodge, Kempinski Mokuti Lodge and Uris Safari Lodge.

The Namibia Tourism Board invited more than 80 travel industry professionals representing 17 countries to attend the Travel Expo as part of its Namibia Academy. Participants from Europe, Asia and neighboring African countries including Angola, China, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, South Korea, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Zambia, the United Kingdom and the U.S. were invited to take part in a network session, visit the Expo and take a fam tour of the country.

Despite a rough two years for international tourism, Digu Naobeb, chief executive officer of the Namibia Tourism Board, was optimistic about the future. “The Namibia Tourism Expo is becoming a formidable promotional event with constant improvements and innovative offerings,” he said. “Tourism is an engine for economic development, particularly in rural development.” He stressed the importance of strategic partnerships for increasing tourism. The host airline, Air Namibia flew the international travel industry professionals in for the Expo. The airline offers six flights a week from Frankfurt to Windhoek and service from Johannesburg, Cape Town, Maun, Luanda, Lusaka and Victoria Falls. For information about Namibia, go to www.namibiatourism.com.