(Posted 08th May 2026)
SADC Secretariat, Boundless Southern Africa and Tourism Alliance to host high-level dialogue on regional connectivity at Africa’s Travel Indaba 2026
The Southern African Development Community
(SADC) Secretariat, Boundless Southern Africa, and the Southern Africa Tourism
Alliance will convene a high-level side event at Africa’s Travel Indaba 2026, bringing
together government officials and private sector leaders to accelerate solutions that will
transform regional connectivity and unlock tourism growth across Southern Africa.
The event, titled “Unlocking Regional Connectivity: Rethinking How Southern Africa
Moves Its Visitors,” will take place on 13 May 2026 at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli ICC
Complex in Durban, South Africa. Supported by the Department of Tourism, Republic of
South Africa, and co-funded by the German Government and the European Union (EU),
the dialogue is implemented by the SADC Secretariat through the Deutsche
Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
Southern Africa’s tourism potential is vast and compelling, offering diverse experiences
across its 16 Member States. Yet fragmented travel, limited air routes, varying visa
requirements, and border inefficiencies have slowed progress. The SADC Tourism
Programme 2020–2030 identifies connectivity as the foundation for growth, and this
event is designed to move beyond reporting progress into dynamic, solution-driven
dialogue. By uniting policymakers and private sector leaders, the session will focus on
practical strategies to position Southern Africa as a seamless, multi-country destination
that is easy to explore and attractive to global travellers.
The two-hour programme will open with a structured update on the SADC Tourism
Programme, highlighting progress on the Univisa assessment, regional air access
studies, Transfrontier Conservation Area development, and border efficiency initiatives.
A government panel of Directors General and senior officials will then explore visa
policy, air services agreements, and border management frameworks. This will be
followed by a private sector panel where industry leaders will challenge assumptions
and propose commercially viable solutions. Confirmed panellists include Mr Aaron
Munetsi, CEO of the Airlines Association of Southern Africa; Ms Dimakatso Malwela of Women of Value Southern Africa (WOVSA); Ms Jillian Blackbeard of Africa’s Eden; Mr Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) and Chair of the Southern Africa Tourism Alliance. Audience members will be able to participate in real time through a digital platform. Both panels will be moderated by Ms Natalia Rosa of the Southern Africa Tourism Alliance.
Ms Angele Makombo N’tumba, Deputy Executive Secretary for Regional Integration at
the SADC Secretariat, emphasised: “Regional connectivity is the foundation on which
the entire SADC Tourism Programme rests. This side event provides an important
platform for government and private sector to engage directly on the realities of moving
visitors across our region, and to identify where we can accelerate progress together.”
Ms Natalia Rosa of the Southern Africa Tourism Alliance added: “The private sector
experiences the consequences of connectivity gaps every day, in lost bookings,
itineraries that cannot be built, and visitors who choose other regions because Southern
Africa is too complicated to navigate. This event is our opportunity to bring that
commercial reality into direct conversation with policymakers. We are not here to report
on progress. We are here to challenge each other on pace.”
The event is open to private sector CEOs and senior executives, national tourism
association leaders, SADC Secretariat officials, Tourism Working Group members,
airline and aviation stakeholders, civil aviation authorities, border management and
immigration officials, development finance and investment representatives,
development partners and tourism media.
For more information contact:
Ms Barbara Lopi, Head of Communication and Public Relations, SADC Secretariat –
Email: blopi@sadc.int and cc: prinfo@sadc.int or Ms Marygoreth Mushi, Programme
Officer for Policy and Market Development – Email: mmushi@sadc.int and cc:
prinfo@sadc.int or Ms Natalia Rosa, Project Lead, Southern Africa Tourism Alliance –
Tel: (+27) 83 449 4334, Email: natalia.rosa@thenbf.co.za
