International Council of Tourism Partners and Africa Travel Association form partnership
The International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) signed a cooperation agreement with ATA, the Africa Travel Association, the leading global trade association promoting tourism to Africa.
For more than three decades, ATA members, representing government leaders and travel professionals worldwide, have strived to increase the flow of tourism arrivals and investments to and across Africa from around the world. In tandem, ATA headquarters has worked to develop and execute these strategies and to plan for the future.
Tourism is a pillar of economic growth in Africa and, to ensure that the continent gains from it, ATA encourages private and public investment, entrepreneurial initiatives, and strong partnerships that will benefit everyone involved. ATA’s success rests on the inspiration and ideas of its members and partners.
ATA Executive Director Edward Bergman witnessed the initial launch of the new ICTP destination alliance in May 2011 at the IIPT Summit in Lusaka, Zambia. The launch was announced at that conference by ICTP Chairman Juergen T. Steinmetz, and Executive Director Alain St Ange, CEO of the Seychelles Tourism Board.
ATA is committed to working with its members in the public and private sectors to support a successful and sustainable tourism industry”said Bergman,“We need to address tourism across sectors and across borders. This is why we are pleased to partner with this initiative.”
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ICTP has a steady growth of very active members in Africa that include Johannesburg, La Reunion, Seychelles, Zimbabwe, and Rwanda.
ICTP Chairman Steinmetz said: “Africa in many ways has excellent policies in place and has planned for green growth. ATA is concentrating on marketing responsible tourism to this continent from North America and other regions.
“This partnership is a win-win for both organizations, and we’re looking forward to working with Edward Bergman and his team on upcoming opportunities and events. As a start, ICTP became a member of ATA, and ATA became an associated member of the International Council of Tourism Partners.”