(Posted 17th November 2024)
News just broke about the sad passing of Dr. Carmen Nibigira and the Tourism Industry of Eastern, Central and Western Africa have been messaging each other with shock and surprise.
Those who’ve been in the industry long know Dr. Carmen Nibigira, pioneer CEO of the East Africa Tourism Platform, the tourism regional private sector platform around 2013-2016. It is during her tenure that the East African (EAC) countries developed a joint marketing strategy, brand, EA single visa and actively marketing as one destination. She was a gentle soul, very loving, a true and dear friend of so many in the world of tourism.
When Dr Carmen Nibigira left the East Africa Tourism Platform (EATP) and relocated to Kigali, she was a consultant with Howarth, then Mastercard and still actively involved with tourism policy within the region. She is known to have been an astute reader and a respected academic. She often would write and was actively involved with tourism training in Kigali where she served as a guest lecturer and mentor.
ATCNews’ Founder and Publisher Prof. Dr. Wolfgang H. Thome also expressed his shock and sadness when the news reached him earlier in the day, saying: ‘I met Carmen first when she was in charge of Burundi Tourism and then again when she was heading the East Africa Tourism Platform and I was at that time the President of the Uganda Tourism Association. We shared a common vision for East Africa’s tourism sector and even after she left EATP we continued to interact on tourism developments, tourism policy for the region and conservation issues. I was privileged to interact with her closely when she studied for her Ph.D. and was amongst the first to congratulate her when she was awarded her doctorate.
I feel sad to have lost yet another friend and ally and will pray for her soul to rest in eternal peace. She will leave a huge gap for the entire tourism industry in not just our region but the whole of Africa.’
Dr. Alain St.Ange, the Head of Saint Ange Tourism Consultancy and the former Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine said earlier today that Dr Carmen Nibigira was a true believer in Africa and of its tourism industry. “I met Dr Carmen in 2016 when I was running to be Secretary General of the UNWTO and she invited me to address a tourism industry event in Kampala in Uganda and to meet the continent’s press. I did not know Dr Carmen Nibingira at that time but was impressed by her desire for Africa not to miss the opportunity to lead the UNWTO and said that it was important for Tourism Africa to know the candidates coming from the African Continent“. said Dr. Alain St.Ange before adding that Africa had lost a tourism leader who worked with passion and with her heart.
