A chartered plane with over 250 Israeli tourists has today landed in Uganda, for the first time since 1976.
According to the Uganda tourism board’s outgoing executive director Steven Asiimwe, the historic visit comes after negotiations with officials of the Israeli national career to begin regular flights to Entebbe.
The tourists came aboard a direct chartered flight from Israel to Uganda, the ELAL flight; the first direct flight from Israel to Uganda since the 1976 raid on Entebbe.
Commenting on the trip, Ms. Tali Yativ, the organizer and team leader of the group said that this was a first of a kind tour for the group.
This trip is a first of its kind for us and we are looking forward to a great experience in Uganda.
We are mostly pleased to see the tourist site of the Uganda old airport tower where a group of Israelis were held hostage by Uganda’s former president. We however look forward to touring more of Uganda over the next few days, Yativ said.
The group is in the country until Saturday, February 16, 2019 and will be visiting the Murchison Falls National Park, the Jewish community in Mbale and various sights in Jinja including the source of the Nile.
UTB outgoing CEO Mr. Stephen Asiimwe said that this was a remarkable development in the sector and the results of this trip will be key in increasing the number of Israeli visitors to Uganda.
“We are positive that this visit will attract more visitors from Israel and the rest of the world. The two countries have a shared piece of history and we hope to strengthen our travel trade in order to increase the number of Israeli tourist coming to Uganda,” Asiimwe said.
On a similar note, the Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Hon. Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu is leading a delegation from the Uganda Tourism Board and tourism private sector players in Tel Aviv, Israel to participate the (ITTM) International Mediterranean Tourism Market; a key activity aimed to foster travel trade between the Israel and Uganda.
Israel has a population of about 8 million people and a GDP of $400 billion and per capita.
Additionally, a group of Presidents of major American Jewish Organizations are currently in the country as part of a national leadership delegation to Uganda.
They will today be hosted by the Uganda Tourism Board to a cultural experience by Ndere Troupe at the Kampala Serena Hotel.
According to Mr. Stephen Asiimwe, the group has been engaged in dialogue on investment in the tourism sector and also a repeat visit to tour Uganda.
Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) is a statutory organization established in 1994. Its role and mandate was reviewed in the Tourism Act of 2008.
The Board’s mandate is to promote and market Uganda across the region and internationally, promote quality assurance in tourist facilities through training, grading and classification, promote tourism investment, support and act as liaison for the private sector in tourism development.
The broader goals of the Board are to increase the contribution of tourism earnings and GDP; improve Uganda’s competitiveness as an international tourism destination; and increase Uganda’s share of Africa’s and World tourism market.
UTB aims to create inclusive opportunities for the tourism sector through market transformation.
Tourism Observer
1 comment:
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