A new report has shown that Ghana is among the list of the top countries where Airbnb guest arrivals are growing globally.
This was made known to delegates attending the maiden Africa Travel Summit in the township of Langa in Cape Town, South Africa by Chris Lehane, the Head of Policy and Communication at Airbnb.
Ghana, along with West African neighbour Nigeria as well as Mozambique, are the three African countries leading the pack.
This growth is mainly generated by guests seeking a different travel experience on the continent.
According to Mr Lehane, the report shows that the African continent features three of the top eight fastest growing countries for guest arrivals on the Airbnb platform.
“Eight to ten guests choose Airbnb to explore specific neighborhoods and two-thirds choose Airbnb’ because the benefit to the local economy is higher,” he noted.
In a keynote address, Mr Lehane revealed to the over 200 delegates gathered at the Guga S’thebe Cultural Centre in Langa that the Airbnb platform is “promoting travel that is local, diverse and inclusive.
“A person who travels should try to take something with them and leave something behind – that is the concept I learned about when visiting President Mandela’s Museum in Johannesburg in 2017,” he noted.
He said the Airbnb community model of healthy tourism is based on advancing the interests of all stakeholders.
The report shows how “Airbnb’s community model creates healthy tourism by benefiting the hosts who share their homes and passion, the guests who are seeking authentic and cultural experiences and the local residents whose cultures, experiences and economies are celebrated and supported,” said Chris Lehane.
The two-day Africa Travel Summit discussed issues about diverse, community-led and inclusive travel in South Africa and on the continent, which Airbnb has been promoting through its platform.
The delegates who were chosen from across Africa gathered to discuss how tourism and technology can enable economic empowerment across the African continent.
The summit created an opportunity to share expertise and ideas on what tourism could do to empower more people in Africa, hear from innovators and learn about the Airbnb Africa Academy.
The Airbnb Africa Academy is part of the firm’s $1 million commitment to boost community-led tourism in Africa, and is supported by the World Bank Group.
South Africa’s tourism marketing organization South African Tourism partnered with Airbnb to bring the Africa Travel Summit to fruition, including sponsoring over 30 delegates from across the continent.
“It’s an honour for us to support the first African Travel Summit in the vibrant neighourhood of Langa, Cape Town,” said Sisa Ntshona, CEO of South African Tourism.
“Inclusivity is a key driver and focus for us at SA Tourism and Airbnb’s offerings speak to this and also help with providing a variety of options for the domestic and international traveler,” he added.
There were speakers from diverse backgrounds including Co-founder of She Leads Africa Afua Osei; Global strategic advisor and five-time published author in Tourism and Economic Development Anita Mendiratta; CEO of Thebe Tourism Jerry Mabena; Senior Travel Specialist at The World Bank Group Hermione Neville; General Manager of MEST Lagos Incubator Neku Atawodi-Edun; Executive Director of KECOBAT, Taiko Lemayian; Country Manager, Airbnb, Velma Corcoran and many more.
Airbnb is a technology platform which allows people rent out their properties or spare rooms to guests.
Since its founding, over 3.5 million guests have arrived on listings on the platform across Africa with about half that number of arrivals occurring in the past year.
Source: 3news.com|Ghana