A N A LY S I S
A N A LY S I S
How the sub-Saharan African hotel sector can impact sustainable development C aroline Dole, Investment Manager, Proparco Nicolas Willemin, Senior Investment Manager, Proparco
Given the attractiveness of the region, supporting the sub-Saharan African hotel sector is a major imperative. This is an especially dynamic sector that has numerous direct and indirect impacts on sustainable development through knock-on effects on the local economy.
FOCUS PROPARCO Proparco, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) subsidiary dedicated to private sector financing, has been supporting sustainable development in Southern countries for the past 40 years. It plays a key role within the AFD Group and in French economic cooperation, i.e., financing and supporting projects deployed by French businesses and financial institutions in developing and emerging countries – everything from promoting microfinance to financing SMEs and regional banking groups.
A
lthough Africa currently accounts for only 5% of the World’s travellers, its hotel sector is booming, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. This growth is being driven by Africa’s burgeoning middle class1 on the lookout for quality hotel accommodation.
Between 1995 and 2016, the number of foreign tourists more than doubled from 24 to 58 million, with a marked increase from the mid-2000s on. In 2017, the World Tourism Organisation (WTO) put the number of tourists at 62 million and estimated that this should rise to 110 million in 20272. This increase has been underpinned by a big jump in the number of African tourists who are currently estimated to comprise 40% of the total and 70% in sub-Saharan Africa (UNCTAD, 2017).
IN 2017, THE NUMBER OF TOURISTS IS ESTIMATED AT 62 MILLION, AND SHOULD REACH 110 MILLION IN 2027
62
million
2017
110
+78%
million
2027
1 I n 2016, one African in three belonged to the middle class, i.e., an estimated 400 million people according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). 2 Africa is home to 131 UNESCO World Heritage sites spread throughout 37 countries (12% of the World’s total).
10 PRIVATE SECTOR & DEVELOPMENT