After a 45-year hiatus, the African Travel Commission (ATC) has been revived and repositioned to promote intra-Africa travel and tourism to sell Africa to the rest of the world.
ATC initially established in 1965 and operated up to 1975 was to function just like the European Travel Commission (ETC) shortly after many African countries gained independence from colonial powers and started running their own affairs as sovereign nations.
This was made known by Mr. Lucky Onoriode George, Executive Director of ATC, who said that Africa had now finally found its voice following the revival of the once-powerful continental body that helped shape global tourism between 1965 and 1975.
He noted that ATC was established as a regional voice for Africa, and due to the reforms it initiated then, the International Union of Official Travel Organisations [IUOTO] was transformed into World Tourism Organisation (WTO) before it was retransformed in 2014 into the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).
ATC’s contributions led IUOTO to initiate September 27 every year as the globally celebrated World Tourism Day.
The ATC Executive Director reiterated that therevived commission, working with stakeholders in both the private and public sectors in the tourism industry on the continent would actualise the dreams of improving intra-African tourism.
ATC is a Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) established to provide a platform where tourism officials and business professionals could meet and collaborate; as well as, connect experts and stakeholders that have shared vision across the travel and tourism industry in Africa.
Its activities are to be implemented by the executive unit based in Accra, Ghana under the guidance of the board of directors, and with the support of a number of expert groups.
Membership is open to all National Tourism Agencies (NTAs) of the 55 member countries in Africa as well as to all private-sector National Tourism Federations (NTFs).