NEW 90 ROOM PROTEA BY MARRIOTT OPENS IN OWERRI
(Posted 27th September 2017)
Coinciding with World Tourism Day did news emerge that Africa’s leading hotel management company Protea has opened a new 90 rooms and suites property in the capital of Nigeria’s Imo State.
The 90-room hotel, developed by African Capital Alliance, a leading investment firm, and Kunoch Limited, is located in Owerri city, the capital of Imo State. ? Imo State is commonly referred to as the “Heartland” and is regarded as the entertainment capital of Eastern Nigeria. The state is also a producer of oil and natural gas and is home to a large number of regional oil and financial services offices.
Commenting on the opening of the hotel, Mr. Volker Heiden, Vice President Protea Hotels by Marriott, Marriott International said: ‘The opening of Protea Hotel by Marriott, Owerri Select, illustrates our confidence in the potential of Nigeria and is in line with our commitment to grow in strategic secondary cities across the continent. The recent expansion of the city’s airport, will give the city better accessibility, which we are confident will further drive business travel‘.
Mr. Obiora Nwogugu, Principal and Head of Real Estate at African Capital Alliance added ‘This new hotel is an important addition to the hotels we already own in the cities of Lagos and Benin in Nigeria, and Takoradi in Ghana. We are pleased to partner yet again with Protea Hotels by Marriott, which enjoys strong regional brand equity and awareness coupled with the global distribution of Marriott International‘.
Described as ‘the continent of opportunity for the 21st century’, Africa continues to be an attractive investment proposition for many global corporates including the hotel industry. Marriott International, a leading hotel operator on the continent, currently operates over 140 hotels in 20 countries and is targeting a projected growth by 2022 of over 200 Hotels with more than 36,000 rooms across operating and pipeline hotels.Protea Hotels by Marriott® is the leading hospitality brand in Africa and it is one of the most widely recognized brands on the continent with over 90 hotels throughout South Africa and seven other African countries, including Zambia, Nigeria, Namibia, Ghana and Uganda amongst others.
