The Pan-African Parliament Committee on Education, Culture, Tourism, and Human Resources, and the newly established Pan-Africa Tourism Board (PATB), are committed to collaborating and prioritizing tourism as a key driver of Africa's sustainable development, the preservation of cultural heritage, and economic empowerment.
The partnership was discussed on the margins of the ongoing 5th Ordinary Session of the Sixth Parliament of the Pan-African Parliament, where Pan-Africa Tourism Board (PATB) President Ambassador Mariam Lesian led her delegation to present the Board’s mandate, challenges, and recommendations to Committee on Education, Culture, Tourism, and Human Resources.
Welcoming the PATB’s recommendations, Committee Chairperson Honourable Kouadio Kouakou Bertin affirmed that the Pan-African Parliament recognises the vital role of tourism in advancing Africa’s integration and economic transformation. He commended the Board on the formation of what he described as a “seminal institution dedicated to the development of sustainable, inclusive, and transformative tourism on our continent.”
“We fully appreciate the contribution of tourism to promoting social, cultural, and economic integration in line with Agenda 2063, and we applaud the commitment shown by the Board in seeking constructive engagement with the Parliament,” Hon. Bertin said, assuring that the joint venture will “address the challenges you have raised, particularly those related to equitable financing for tourism development.”
Hon. Bertin insisted that the Committee views tourism as being included in a pragmatic reparation strategy so that communities economically benefit while preserving African heritage and promoting cultural bonds with African people of descent throughout the world.
The Education, Culture, Tourism, and Human Resources Committee plays a central role in establishing policies for open access to education, cultural preservation, tourism, and human capital development in the continent. Its collaboration with the PATB is Africa's vision of harmonised development under the African Union’s Agenda 2063 according to the vision of the theme of reparative justice during this period.
Founded on 17 May 2025, the Pan-Africa Tourism Board is currently made up of over 20 countries in Africa and looks to support African governments in marketing sustainable, inclusive, and transformative tourism on the continent of Africa and the broader African diaspora, encompassing the Caribbean and Pacific.
In the presentation, the PATB observed persistent under-financing of tourism ministries in the majority of African countries in light of the sector’s potential to deliver significant contributions to GDP, employment, and the preservation of cultural heritage.
The Board proposed that the Pan-African Parliament prepare continental guidelines for minimum tourism budget allocation and embrace a binding financing accord to tourism development, in light of systematically strengthening the sector and triggering sustainable investment.
As part of its future vision, the PATB outlined its future “Royal Strategy” under the Royal Legacy Tourism Desk whereby African heritage tourism linked to Africa’s royal and cultural destinations is encouraged with the creation of employment opportunities and Diaspora investment.
“In accordance with Agenda 2063: “The Africa We Want”, the Pan-Africa Tourism Board is certain that tourism remains a central pillar for social, economic, and cultural cohesion, fostering intra-African trade, youth and female empowerment, and safeguarding the dynamic heritage of Africa,” said Amb. Mariam Lesian
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