EAC launches online tourism courses to harness competitiveness

June 4, 2024 in Investment, Travel & Tourism by Editor

As a complement to other private sector training programmes, the courses, developed in collaboration with the European Union and the German Development Cooperation Agency, are intended to elevate professional standards and skill sets across the region’s tourism industry.

The East African Community (EAC) Secretariat headquartered in Arusha, Tanzania, has officially launched free online courses for those involved in the regional tourism industry as a way to underpin the ‘Visit East Africa – Feel the Vibe Brand’ campaign that was unveiled in November 2023. The single brand campaign portrays the region as diverse, unique, beautiful, and culturally rich.

According to a Secretariat statement, under the EAC Online Tourism Capacity Development Programme, are course are: Tourism Marketing (June – October 2024), Sustainable Tourism and Hospitality Management (November – February 2025), Tour Guiding (November – February 2025) and Implementation of Sustainable Tourism Practices (March – June 2025).

The courses, developed in collaboration with the European Union and the German Development Cooperation Agency, GIZ, are intended to elevate professional standards and skill sets across the region’s tourism industry.

Each course within the programme spans four months, covering several topics essential to the tourism sector, but also allowing ample time for deep engagement and understanding. Upon completion, learners will receive a downloadable EAC certificate, digitally signed by the EAC leadership. The courses are available both in English and French.  Interested people can obtain details via the EAC website under Tourism and Wildlife Management.

The programme was officially launched during a virtual session led by Andrea Aguer Ariik Malueth, the EAC Deputy Secretary General, Infrastructure, Productive, Social and Political Sectors.

The event was attended by various tourism stakeholders from both the public and private sectors, including tourism boards, tour operators, tour guides, SMEs, and the East African Tourism Platform, among other tourism stakeholders across the region.

Malueth said, “This initiative builds on our efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic to support the resumption of tourism services. Together, we can redefine tourism for the benefit of all EAC citizens and future generations.”

Marius Weist, the GIZ Tourism Component Lead said, “Now, under this brand, we are excited to support EAC in a state-of-the-art e-learning initiative to foster capacity development in the tourism sector. Thus, it just fits in perfectly that the first topic that this programme covers focuses on tourism marketing.”

In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and a decline in tourism numbers, the Partner States developed the EAC Tourism Marketing Strategy (2021 –2025). Although there has been a recovery, the strategy aims to make the EAC region as the leading sustainable tourism destination in Africa.  Annual tourist arrivals are anticipated to increase to about 14.05 million by 2025 from the 7.2 million recorded in 2019.

The strategy emphasizes on developing multi-destination regional tourism products that will be marketed to intra-regional and international markets. In line with this, EAC is aiming to strengthen the institutional and private sector capacity in the region to develop and jointly market regional tourism products.