As hotels in East Africa are closing their doors as the effects of the global pandemic continue to bite, Tanzania is making moves to ward off the negative effects of Covid-19 by resuming business as usual, including in its tourism and hospitality sector.

In fact only this past week, Tanzania has announced that it will host its first Mafia Island Tourism Exhibition Week. The ambitious and bold move is in line with other measures that the country is taking to revive its tourism sector.

The country has already set aside millions of dollars to improve tourists experience at one of its major attractions, Mt Kilimanjaro. Tanzania has set aside money to cut out a new route to climb the mountain. This new route is exclusive for VIP tourists and other VIP personnel and is expect to boost tourism in the region.

Also Read: Tanzania’s Tourism Board unveils luxury route to

One of Kenya’s luxurious hotel in Nairobi, The Fairmont Norfolk has closed indefinitely and fired all its employees.

Management has attributed to firing to the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the business.

The Country Manager Mehdi Morad in a Memo dated May 27, said that due to the uncertainty Covid-19 pandemic, the firm has been forced to terminate employee contracts and close their properties at the Norfolk and Fairmont Mara Safari Cub.

“It is therefore the decision of the management to terminate the Services of all its employees due to “frustration” by way of mutual separation and taking into account the loyalty and dedication the employees have put into the success of our company in the previous years,” the Memo reads.

The staff will receive their termination letters by June 5, 2020.

This is not a first in the industry since the coronavirus outbreak. Other hotels that have shut down …

THE EXCHANGE sat down with the CEO of Johari Rotana Hotel, Mr. Joerg Potreck to discuss about the hospitality industry in Tanzania and what the future holds for Johari Rotana.

 Briefly tell us about the history of Rotana Hotels?

We are a hotel management company from the United Arab Emirates  founded in 1992 by Nasser Al Nowais and Selim El Zyr. Operating as Rotana, we opened our first property, the Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi in 1993 and today we are one of the leading hotel management company within the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and Turkey with a portfolio of over 100 properties in 26 cities.

Rotana combines a unique understanding of the culture and communities of the Middle East with the collective expertise of an executive team contributing to years of international experience in the service industry.

 What sets apart Johari Rotana from other world class hotels in Tanzania?…

Serena Hotels and Resort, a leading global hospitality brands with prominence in East Africa has partnered with a Forbes feted travel-tech company INTELITY to launch a mobile app to promote easy bookings.

The upscale hospitality brand, best known for its unique collection of luxury hotels, resorts, and safari lodges within East Africa, Mozambique, and Asia, will partner with INTELITY to build a custom, richly branded mobile experience for their guests.

Serena Hotels’ new brand app will enable guests to book and manage reservations, check-in (and out), and download a mobile room key directly to their smartphone. Additionally, the app will support service requests, mobile dining orders, messaging with staff, and local and property information, while easy access to amenities will simplify the booking process for spa, dining, and tours. From an operations perspective, INTELITY’s staff-facing dashboard collects and streamlines workflows, tracks all activity, and offers real-time operational insights with built-in …

Charity is yet another effective measure against poverty across the globe.

It provides communities with compelling abilities to exercise their socio-economic activities within inclusivity parameters and resilience, alleviating worst humanitarian conditions that affect populations over time and space.

As we are marking the international day of charity, today 5^th September. It is crucial to acknowledge the role taken by the charity organizations worldwide, in their quest for harmonizing livelihood in disease-ravaged communities, while appending public services such as health care, education, housing, and child protection.

For over 20 years, United Nations has designated this very day, to execute vital objectives; sensitizing and mobilizing people, NGO’s and stakeholders all around the world to help others through volunteer and philanthropic actions.

Eradicating poverty in its all forms is inevitable, alleviating extreme poverty and the worst humanitarian crisis is an indispensable requirement for sustainable development.

READ: How Africa can create jobs, conquer

 Kenya’s own leading casual dining chain, Big Square, has accomplished yet another milestone in its strategic expansion program, by officially opening its 12^th outlet at Shell Service Station in Mountain View.

The new outlet, which cost Kes.45 million is part of the restaurant chain’s plan to bring an outlet closer to more of the people of Nairobi., The new branch occupies 4,000 sq. ft with a seating capacity of 150 customers.

Speaking on Big Square’s strategic expansion program and the launch of the new outlet, Sebastian McKinlay Managing Director, Interstrat Limited, Big Square’s parent company said: “An increasingly globalized environment and Kenya’s growing population and economy is fuelling demand for new retail formats that meet consumers preferences and aspirations. Based on these insights, we are deliberately forging partnerships such as this so that we realize our growth strategies at the same time creating memorable experiences for our customers through …