African Travel Indava 2025 reaffirmed its role as the main leisure trade show on the continent, bringing together tourism leaders and stakeholders across Africa to showcase their offerings, establish partnerships and addressing shared industry challenges.
Source: Supply
The event, held in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, was hosted by the South African Tourism Authority in cooperation with the KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Authority and Film Bureau, Durban Tourism and Inksa Albahtruz Ridarban ICC.
The recurring theme throughout the assembly was clear: collaboration over competition.
The unified tourism front in Africa
Eswatini Minister Sikhumbuzo Dlamini emphasized the importance of partnership-driven growth. “Partnerships and collaboration are very important to ensure you use other partners. We are not here to compete. We are here to work together,” he said that Esvatini benefited from tourists visiting nearby South Africa and emphasized the importance of regional cooperation.
Zambian Tourism Minister Rodney Sikumba reiterated this sentiment with a passionate call for integration. “As African tourism ministers, we have a unique resolve to work as a team. The numbers need to be united and strong. There is no longer a day of competition and we have to make us unique.
Sikumba highlighted the expansion of visa-free access from 42 countries in Zambia to 167 countries, advocating for strengthening open air and regional air hubs. “We don't have to all reinvent the wheel. Let's strengthen our existing hubs, such as Tambo International Airport, Jomokenyatta International Airport, and Bore International Airport. Collaboration is the path to come.”
Regional Partnerships that promote tourism
Mozambique's Secretary of Tourism Fredson Bacar cited the Zimoza Transfrontier Park, a joint effort between Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Zambia, as a successful example of regional tourism cooperation. He noted that around 70-75% of Mozambique tourists come from South Africa, highlighting the move to exempt 29 countries from Visa requirements, including Mozambique's recent SADC countries.
Angola's Tourism Minister Marcio de Jesus Lopez Daniel called Africa's travel indava “a starting point for being an African person and addressing the barriers that still exist in creating a more boundary-free economy between our countries.” He unveiled Angola's plans to launch E-Visas and E-Permits by 2028, highlighting the need to implement long-debated open sky and visa-free travel initiatives.
“Young people from Africa don't understand why they can't travel from Cape to Cairo without a visa,” Daniel pointed out, adding that Angola has launched an airline with the ambition to better connect African destinations. The Minister has announced a planned inter-business meeting between tour operators from Angolan and Zambia and upcoming collaborations with counterparts in South Africa.
Investing in travel technology and skill development
South Africa's Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille tackled travel and visa challenges that hinder growth. She confirmed that “visa and open skies remain two biggest barriers to growth tourism on the continent,” and said pressure is being applied through the African Union and the AFCFTA structure.
De Lille has announced that South Africa is moving towards an expected electronic travel approval (ETA) system by the end of the year.
Skill development was also a focus field. Delhir stressed the need for “demand-driven skills” training, but Minister Sikumba pointed out that Zambia has incorporated hospitality training into its national curriculum to prepare a youthful population for tourism careers.
