| MESSAGE FROM THE NAMIBIA TOURISM BOARD | directly employed in the sector, while others owe their jobs indirectly to the broader implications of tourism and its requirements in sectors such as retailing and construction. Our quality-assurance activities continued to improve industry standards and ensure regulatory enforcement. This activity remains a key element. The intention is to give it a more robust focus during 2016 to contribute towards the NDP4 commitment of turning Namibia into a competitive destination by the year 2017. I would like to highlight two projects during 2015 which showcased excellent joint venture between the Public and Private sector: Public and Private sector joined forces by successfully presenting the full scope of the Namibian tourism portfolio to the international travel trade and the French-speaking public.
Digu //Naobeb CEO: Namibia Tourism Board
Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in Namibia and forms one of the pillars of the national economy. Namibia needs to keep up the momentum for further development of tourism by diversifying its products, this is particularly important within the business travel sector. In total, 1,320,062 tourists visited Namibia in 2014, which represents a significant increase of 12,2%. We recorded 470,747 tourist arrivals from Angola and 312,153 from South Africa. Germany remains the most important international source market with 86,121 tourist arrivals followed by North America and Canada with 28,787; the United Kingdom with 25,653 and France with 19,577 tourist arrivals. Since Namibia achieved independence in 1990, the Namibian Government has placed an emphasis on the development of tourism, particularly community-based tourism, and continues to recognise the sector as one of the strongest pillars of the Namibian economy. The tourism industry is highly labour intensive. As such it has a direct link to National Development Plan 4 and VISION 2030. Economic growth, employment creation, reduction of income inequalities, HIV/AIDS and poverty alleviation are among the goals envisaged with the aforementioned plan. Today many Namibians are
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Under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and the Motto “Namibia – Undiscovered Places, People and Wildlife” Frenchand German-speaking visitors from the Alsace region had the unique opportunity to see, hear, feel and taste Namibia at the SITV tourism fair in Colmar, France. As Guest of Honour, Namibia’s strong presence and vibrant energy attracted hundreds of people to the impressive Namibian pavilion which reflected the look and feel of an authentic Namibian village on an area of 1,000 m2. The bilateral relations between the Omusati Region and the Haut Rhin were highlighted by means of a replica of a traditional Oshiwambo hut in which visitors had the opportunity to explore some of the Oshiwambo cultural and traditional instruments and tools showcased by the Omusati Regional Council. The Namibia Tourism Board proudly hosted the 5th edition of the popular international trade networking event “Namibia Academy” and for the first time in its history the event was in partnership with the HAN Tourism Trade Forum (HTTF). NTB and HAN joined hands to offer the Namibian travel industry and international partners a new and enlarged networking and business platform by merging NTB’s “The World meets
Namibia” networking event and HAN’s HTTF, under the united banner of the ”Namibia Academy Meets HTTF”. This pilot project successfully positioned a record number of 215 Namibian tourism product and service providers. Sixtyfive product managers and decisionmakers of leading international tour operators from South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Europe, China, the United States and Canada and UAE have signed up for the event. More than half of these arrived from the European source markets – from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, France, Italy, the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia and Norway. The Namibia Academy combines product workshops with educational trips to explore product developments among the newly developed self-drive routes “Four Rivers”, “Omulunga Palm” and “Arid Eden” as well as the popular “Cape to Namibia” route. The main objective of the Namibia Academy is to showcase product developments in strategically chosen regions, as well as to provide a professional platform for interactive discussions and negotiations. The Namibia Academy contributes to NTB’s overall objective of promoting Namibia and its different regions as a sustainable all-year-round destination and motivates the sale of Namibia’s unique tourism product. Our marketing focus continues to promote the seasonal and geographical spread by strengthening sales in the low season through showcasing and marketing all the regions of Namibia, including routes that are off the beaten track. Our aim is to position Namibia in all our markets according to the developed branding themes of Adventure & Activity, Wildlife & Conservation, Culture, and Contrasting Landscapes, all of which offer authentic experiences that are good value for money. We are committed to achieving new heights and to benefiting from growth rates in the coming five years as envisaged by NDP4. We thank our National Carrier, our international trade and media partners as well as the Namibian tourism industry for their loyal support during 2015, and are looking forward to many exciting joint ventures in 2016.
NTB Europe Schiller str. 42-44 60313 Frankfurt/Main Germany Tel (+49 69) 133 7360 Fax (+49 69) 133 73625 info@namibia-tourism.com www.namibia-tourism.com
NTB Trade & PR Representative in France c/o LS Promotions 31 Boulevard Suchet, 75016 Paris Tel (+33 1) 405 08863 Fax (+33 1) 405 08863 ntbfrance@orange.fr www.namibiatourism.com.na
NTB Trade Representative in China c/o DPS Consulting Co. Ltd Room 416, ShengBao Building No. 2 Tuanjiehu Beilu, Chaoyang Beijing, 100026, China Tel (+86 10) 844 66463 Fax (+86 10) 658 22772 huhm@dps-china.com
NTB Trade & PR Representative in United Kingdom c/o HB Portfolio 58 Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1 0AS, United Kingdom Tel (+44 20) 736 70962 Fax (+44 20) 740 73810 Namibia@hbportfolio.co.uk www.travelnamibia.co.uk
NTB Trade & PR Representative in Italy c/o Airconsult, Via Adolfo Ravà, 106 00142 Rome Tel (+39 06) 542 42542 Fax (+39 06) 542 42534/36 namibiatourism@airconsult.it www.namibiatourism.com.na
c/o Oriental Gateway Consultancy 3/F, #2150, Jinxiu Road Shanghai, 200127, China Tel (+86 21) 5059 6888 Fax (+86 21) 5059 3838 zhuzheng0312@yahoo.com www.namibiatourism.com.na
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