Routes Africa Opens in Victoria Falls

PR57112

MANCHESTER, England, June 19 /PRN=KYODO JBN/ --

    - Industry CEOs and Tourism Ministers to meet at Africa's most important

aviation event

    The 9th Routes Africa, the largest route development event in Africa, will

open this weekend in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. The event will bring together

the leading airports, airlines, tourism authorities, policy-makers and aviation

stakeholders to develop new air services to, from and within Africa. Hosted by

the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe, Routes Africa 2014 will take place at

the Elephant Hills Hotel and Resort 22-24 June.

    Over 350 delegates are expected to attend the event representing 40 leading

airlines, 50 airports and 15 tourism authorities. Africa's three main airlines,

Kenya Airways, South African Airways and Ethiopian Airlines, are joined by two

of the big Gulf carriers (Emirates and Etihad Airways) and global carriers such

as British Airways, Iberia Airlines and Condor Airlines who are looking into

expanding their network to the continent. Low cost carriers, which are

increasingly shaping the face of aviation in Africa, will also be out in force

with registrations received from pan-African low-cost carrier Fastjet as well

as Comair, Fly540 and start-up carrier FlyAfrica.com.

    Honourable Engineer Walter Mzembi (MP), Minister of Tourism and

Hospitality, Zimbabwe, commented: "From the theatre of travel, Tourism is about

movement of people, and herein lies the critical importance of conferences such

as Routes Africa 2014 taking place in this historical town of Victoria Falls,

one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It is with great honour that my country

Zimbabwe was recently bestowed with the World Best Tourism Destination and the

Favourite Cultural Destination for 2014 by the European Council on Tourism and

Trade, being the first such award for an African country. It is abundantly

clear that Africa needs to gain mileage in the sphere of physical travel as

well as administratively facilitating travel. Air connectivity is the umbilical

cord that links tourism destinations and its source markets. As we look at

Travel Tourism with new eyes, let us, at the regional and continental levels,

stay connected, focused on cooperation, value addition and super service in

order for our beloved continent Africa, to grow its share of the global tourism

market. It is not a coincidence that Routes Africa 2014 is focusing on air

connectivity issues as one of the strategic 'gates' in boosting tourism."

    The Chief Executive of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, Mr Karikoga Kaseke,

expressed joy on the occasion of hosting the 2014 Routes Africa in Zimbabwe.

"We are extremely happy that this strategic conference has come to Zimbabwe, at

a time when the issue of the accessibility of regional destinations is

topical," said Kaseke, continuing: "As we continue to host more conferences in

Zimbabwe, this one is unique in that it focuses on airline routes development

in Africa and we hope it will help address the access challenges that usually

affect all destinations on our continent. Tourism development in Africa will

only move forward when we foster regional packages. It is my sincere hope that

all Tourism Boards present at this conference will see the importance of

partnerships with the aviation industry and beyond."

    Katie Bland, Director Routes for UBM Live said: "Africa is one of the most

dynamic and exciting aviation markets in the world right now. The continent

might well become the most important geographic part of the world over the next

100 years, which is why African airlines are getting stronger and stronger, and

carriers from all over the world are increasingly tapping the African market.

The decisions taken at Routes Africa will be decisive in shaping the future of

aviation in Africa for years to come."

    One of the highlights of the event will be the Routes Africa Strategy

Summit which, taking place over two days, will open the event on Sunday 22nd

June. Attendees will hear from a number of high-level speakers, including

Honourable Engineer Walter Mzembi (MP), Minister of Tourism and Hospitality,

Zimbabwe, Minister Fernando Maquengo, Minister of Transport and Public Works,

Sao Tome and Principe, Dr. Elijah Chingosho, Secretary General of AFRAA,

Raphael Kuuchi, IATA's Vice President for Africa, Edmund Makona, Acting CEO,

Air Zimbabwe, Christophe Allard, CEO, Korongo Airlines, Saxen van Coller, CEO,

Dube TradePort Corporation and Richard Bodin, Chief Commercial Officer of

Fastjet.

    For more information on Routes Africa, please visit our website

[http://www.routesonline.com/events/168/routes-africa-2014/?utm_source=the-hub&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=the-hub-EU ] .

    Notes to Editors

    About Routes

    - Routes organises world-renowned airline and airport networking events

through its regional and global Route Development Forums. Each year, there is

one global event and one regional event in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas

and CIS respectively. http://www.routesonline.com  

    - Routes was founded in 1995 as part of the Manchester UK-based ASM Ltd.,

a  consultancy specialising in the field of route development for airports.

http://www.asm-global.com. Routes and ASM are part of the UBM Live division of

UBM plc.

    - UBM Live connects people and creates opportunities for companies across

five continents to develop new business, meet customers, launch new products,

promote their brands and expand their markets. Through premiere brands such as

MD&M, CPhI, IFSEC, TFM&A, Cruise Shipping Miami, the Concrete Show, the Routes

portfolio of events, Airport Cities and many others, UBM Live exhibitions,

conferences, awards programs, publications, websites and training and

certification programs are an integral part of the marketing plans of companies

across more than 20 industry sectors. http://www.ubmlive.com

    Follow us on Twitter: @Routesonline, @TheHUBRoutes, @VictoriaRoutes,

@NLPROU, @airlineroute

    About UBM plc

    - UBM plc is a global events-led marketing services and communications

company. We help businesses do business, bringing the world's buyers and

sellers together at events and online, as well as producing and distributing

news and specialist content. Our 5,500 staff in more than 30 countries are

organised into expert teams which serve commercial and professional

communities, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively

and efficiently.

    - For more information, go to http://www.ubm.com; follow us on Twitter at

@UBM_plc [http://twitter.com/UBM_plc ] to get the latest UBM corporate news;

follow @UBM for news from all UBM's businesses; follow @UBM for a flavour of

UBM from selected members of UBM's Twitterati.

    SOURCE: UBM Live Routes Ltd