Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) had taken part in the World Travel Market (WTM) Africa 2022.

WTM Africa is the leading global tourism fair held in the African continent. This year's WTM Africa is being staged at Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC), from April 11th to April 13th, 2022 in the South African capital city, Cape Town.

The Maldives is represented at this event by MMPRC, along with 11 co-exhibitors. MMPRC states that their aim is to promote various tourism products, including luxury resorts, hotels, guesthouses and live-aboard, at the African market.

MMPRC states that they mainly aim to market the luxury experiences available in Maldives and promote the unique scattered geography of Maldivian islands.

Participation in this event is in line with their marketing strategy for the African market, states MMPRC. As such, the strategy is based on maintaining destination momentum and increasing bookings and arrivals from the African market while providing the latest information of the destination and guidelines for the travel trade and potential travelers.

The WTM Africa fairs launched in 2014, is one of the six major events in the WTM portfolio.

WTM Africa estimates participation from over 6000 travel industry professionals. Similar to the WTM flagship events like WTM London, or ATM in Dubai, WTM Africa delivers a platform for travel trade industry buyers, sellers, and media representatives to connect, network, and hold pre-scheduled meetings and appointments in order to form mutually beneficial relationships and create business opportunities. The event is frequented by corporate travel decision-makers, potential investors in hospitality, leisure, and travel, and tour operators and travel agents with VIP clients.

Africa is an important market to the Maldives, with arrivals from countries like South Africa increasing gradually over the years. Last year, South Africa was ranked as the 17th top source market to the Maldives. Additionally, the African market has seen over 70 percent increase in arrivals between 2019 and 2021.