Another important connection was Ahlam, who was born in Tanzania, currently resides in China, and has a Ugandan father. But has never been here. That Ugandan-Tanzanian connection immediately made our conversation interesting. She will be traveling soon and I ptomised to take her around. She is also in the process of developing a women-driven tourism association and serves as an advisor with UNFPA. We connected particularly around our shared interest in women’s empowerment And beyond the professional conversation, we had the opportunity to simply sit down as young women and talk about life, our journeys and what we are trying to build. From the conversation, I realised she's a very smart woman who has gone out of her way to the unimaginable!

Mr. Abdulrahman Abdulsamad The engagement with the Guest of Honour at the summit was particularly meaningful. He is a former Ambassador of Zanzibar to Russia and a prominent businessman with a strong connection to Uganda. Including his involvement in the East African Crude Oil Project in Hoima. He was very interested in what we were doing and strongly encouraged the idea of strengthening Uganda–Zanzibar relations. He shared his own experiences in Uganda, including his engagements with the country’s leadership, and pledged to remain available and respond to our calls and messages as we pursue the partnership.

Fatma Ali Mohamed - CEO of Zanzibar Association of Tourism Investors (ZATI) The association is the only one that sits on the @UN Board in Africa. And they have a task to connect tourism businesses and associations across Africa. The conversation revealed that there had already been attempts to reach tourism associations in Uganda without response. This created an opportunity for me to help bridge that connection. We also discussed the wider Uganda-Zanzibar partnership, including AFCON-related opportunities, and she expressed willingness to support the process.

DIGITAL TOURISM MASTERCLASS - COHORT 2 Following the first cohort, GITA-Africa, in partnership with Maeya Digital, is pleased to announce the second cohort of the Advanced Digital Tourism Masterclass, running from 17th October to 21st November 2026. Running only on Saturdays from 7am-9am EAT. To be facilitated by Ms. Florah of Maeya Digital and Ms. Irene Allen of Uncovered Travel Initiative This cohort will build on the knowledge gained in the first training, exploring practical digital systems and strategies to help tourism brands grow, market themselves and operate more efficiently online Please note that participation is strictly limited to subscribed GITA-Africa members who attended the first cohort Format: Online Registration link: forms.gle/USNofQ9nujZvNPgd7 We look forward to building on what we started and taking our members’ digital tourism skills to the next level