#MICEINAFRICA “The Covid-19 pandemic’s power lies in its invisibility. We are all united by the crippling effects of an enemy we cannot see and being part of an industry that was the first to close and will likely be the last to return... we need to start focusing on the ‘new normal’,” noted Kevin in his introduction. JCI has created an initiative called JCI Rise to encourage the participation of the youth in their communities. This is centred on three pillars, namely; preserving mental health, sustaining and rebuilding economies, and motivating the workforce. In addition, the African Perspectives Report on the MICE Industry was announced to bridge the vast chasm in data within the continent’s MICE sector. The report is a partnership between Niche Partners and The Planner Guru, which will be released during the first quarter of 2021. One of the most exciting takeaways from the event was the launch of the inaugural Africa Meetings Industry Day and in line with this, it will run as the Africa MICE Summit from 2021, together with the Africa MICE Awards.
MICE plays a significant role in reshaping minds, communities and industries – its roots are as deep as our existence as humans and it should never be mistaken for a trend. Let’s get out of our silos and champion Africa to Africa for Africa, with cross-destination collaborations and capacity development initiatives.” Obinna Nwachuya, principal, Sluxia
HOW IT ALL STARTED We concluded the day’s proceedings with organisers Kezy Mukiri, Mulemwa Moongwa and Obinna Nwachuya highlighting the significance of their collaboration in how the Africa MICE Industry Stakeholders Roundtable came together. After the event, they shared their personal journeys with Meetings magazine. DEMONSTRATING THE ART OF COLLABORATION Obinna Nwachuya, principal at Sluxia, was born in Nigeria and currently toggles between Prague, Czech Republic, and Abuja, Nigeria. His career began long before he knew it as MICE, he says. Starting out as a marketing executive in charge of beverage supplies for a long list of events across southern Nigeria, his role also involved coordinating partnerships and marketing activations for new brands entering the market. “From there, I found myself working backstage for Carnival Calabar, different campus activations for Telcos, fashion shows and film festivals. As a young adult, I was fascinated by the orchestra of event creativity and the general idea of taking a concept from mind to paper to a full-blown experience. I was hooked,” recalls Obinna. He delved into the economics of business events after a rather interesting group project he was assigned to work on just a few weeks after arriving Spain in pursuit of a master’s degree in innovation and tourism marketing. The days that followed brewed a long list of questions and carved a new path: “Why were the majority of conferences that discussed Africa’s future
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championed by non-Africans outside its borders? What is the true cost of Africa’s absence from the nearly trillion-dollar industry and what would it take to grow its slice of the pie?” For Obinna, the mission continues. For Kezy Mukiri, her journey in MICE started out quite differently. “I am a lawyer by qualification. In 2007, three years into my legal practice and just after completing my master’s degree, I founded Zuri Events. My vision then was twofold: first, to provide corporate organisations with end-to-end professional brand management solutions using live events to create impactful experiences, and,
second, to create a platform for employment generation aimed at empowering women and young people in my community,” says Kezy. Zuri Events has since grown from a small Kenyan outfit providing tailor-made solutions to corporate organisations across East Africa to a company focused on research, green innovations and eco-friendly solutions for sustainable event management. This includes training and capacity development for MICE professionals, as well as policy engagement for MICE development across Africa. Like Kezy, Mulemwa Moongwa was set to start her career in law but after spending her
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