Honourable Najib Balala is Kenya’s Minister of Tourism and Wildlife. After previously serving in that cabinet position once before, from 2008 to 2012, and subsequently serving as Chairman of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, Hon. Balala was re-appointed as Kenya's Tourism Minister in 2015.
Following the establishment of Kenya’s new Constitution in 2012, Hon. Balala was responsible for delivering the country’s reformed Tourism Bill and providing the sector with a policy designed to promote growth and sustainability through public-private cooperation.
Listen in for insights from a man credited with steering Kenya’s tourism sector to recovery following the country’s tragic post-election violence in 2008, and for being the chief architect of what is widely considered one of the continent’s most progressive tourism policy and legal frameworks.
Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content. Opinions expressed by the host, Andile Masuku, and his guest do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the presenting sponsor, Airbnb.
Stephan Ekbergh is the Founder and CEO of Travelstart. He is a Swedish entrepreneur who is probably best known for growing Travelstart from a provocative online travel startup in Scandinavia to one of the world’s largest online travel agencies servicing emerging markets in Africa and the Middle East.
Prior to founding Travelstart, Stephan was a touring DJ and entertainment entrepreneur who performed at events all over Europe. After founding Travelstart in 1999 and steering the business to profitability, he moved to Cape Town, South Africa in 2004 to expand the firm into Africa. In 2010, he decided to sell Travelstart's European division to focus on growth into the Middle East, and in 2016, Travelstart took on $40 million dollars of investment in a round led by Amadeus.
Listen in to learn how Stephan succeeded in bringing his African startup dream to fruition and to hear why he's bullish about the business potential of Africa's travel and tourism industry.
Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018 (https://africatravelsummit.com). African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content. Opinions expressed by the host, Andile Masuku, and his guest/s do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the presenting sponsor, Airbnb.
Pearl Boshomane Tsotetsi is the Lifestyle Editor at the Sunday Times (South Africa). Pearl was voted one of Mail and Guardian's Top 200 Young South Africans in 2015 and assumed her current role in 2017. She previously served as Editor of Daily Planet, an intersectional pop culture and social commentary website covering the arts, feminism, racism, social media and digital consumer trends.
In addition to working at the Sunday Times, the self-proclaimed "Blonde Bombshell" writes and curates for her blog, FeministMakoti.co.za— a platform for black female voices to convey perspectives on love, sex, marriage, relationships and everything in between.
In this conversation with Andile Masuku - taped at Africa Travel Summit 2018 (http://africatravelsummit.com) - Pearl unpacks her aspirational editorial approach to crafting an “intelligent lifestyle product” that is both representative and market-relevant. Listen in for some straight-talk about the sociopolitical and economic importance of profiling black excellence in top-tier lifestyle reporting, and for candid views on the highlights and hazards of travelling while black.
Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content. Opinions expressed by the host, Andile Masuku, and his guest/s do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the presenting sponsor, Airbnb.
Chris Lehane is Airbnb’s Head of Global Policy, Public Affairs and Communications. Chris engages with policymakers around the world to safeguard the rights of people who have bought into the travel industry giant's home sharing proposition. He also frequently contributes to public discourse around the societal hazards, economic benefits and democratisation potential of the new "experience economy" Airbnb is propagating.
In the 1990's, Chris served in various positions in the Clinton Administration, including Press Secretary to Vice-President Al Gore and Special Assistant Counsel to President Bill Clinton. Today, he is easily one of the world’s most high profile sharing economy proponents and in this conversation with Andile Masuku - taped at Africa Travel Summit 2018 (http://africatravelsummit.com) - Chris unpacks some of the idealistic values influencing Airbnb’s strategy and fuelling their growth. He also tackles some of the very real challenges that society will need to confront as the world navigates towards a more inclusive future of global travel and tourism.
Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content.
Mark Mwongela is the Co-founder and CEO of Pesapal, a leading Kenyan mobile, online and point-of-sale (POS) payment platform operating in seven African countries including Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Kenya. Previously, Mark served as Technical Director at Pesapal— overseeing the firm's product development efforts, and prior to that, he was Managing Director of Variant Technology Management Consultancy.
In this conversation with Andile Masuku - taped at Africa Travel Summit 2018 (http://africatravelsummit.com) - Mark shares the rationale for Pesapal's Pan-African hospitality business focus and factors in on how home-grown fintech innovation is contributing to the growth of the continent's travel and tourism industry at large.
Listen in to hear how a travel blog targeting Kenyans living abroad led to the development of what is now one of Kenya’s leading mobile, online and point of sale platforms servicing hundreds of hotels, tour companies and travel operators.
Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content. Opinions expressed by the host, Andile Masuku, and his guest/s do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the presenting sponsor, Airbnb.
