Togo’s top internationally-branded five-star hotel has opened – providing delegates to the forthcoming Africa Hotel Investment Forum (AHIF) in Lomé on June 21-22 with a prime example of achievement in a continent often perceived as being difficult for developers.
The Radisson Blu Hotel 2 Février is the fruit of a private-public partnership between, the hotel developer, GroupeKalyan; the management company, Carlson Rezidor;andthe government of Togo. It took 18 months to develop and is the kind of project encouraged by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), the agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.
The success in developing the hotel so quickly will form the basis of a case-study discussion at AHIF taking place on 21 and 22June in Lomé. The session entitled “Lessons from a hotel development success story” will explore how a highly-specified320 room conference hotel was able to be completed in double quick time in a market which has a reputation for slow infrastructure development progress. The panel will consist of all the main protagonists who will explain what they did to bring the projectto fruition.
Matthew Weihs, managing director of Bench Events which organises AHIF, said:”This is a great example of how to get things done in the hotel sector and another good reason why people can be optimistic about investing in Africa. We welcome this hotel opening and of course its timing will provide a great focus for one of our many discussions at AHIF.”
The new hotel fulfils many of the criteria set down by UNWTO which promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability.
Bernadette EssossimnaLegzim-Balouki, Minister of Commerce, Industry, Private Sector and Tourism, Togo, said: “This new luxury hotel will give a much-needed boost to our country’s tourism industry which is already going from strength to strength.”
Ashok Gupta, Managing Director & CEO, Kalyan Hospitality Development Togo said: “This is a landmark hotel development which marks a new era for Togo and we are proud that it was achieved through a successful collaboration with Togo’s Ministry of Commerce, Industry, Private Sector and Tourism.”
The AHIF conference will take place on 21 and 22 June at the new landmark Radisson Blu Hotel 2 Février in the capital. To see the full AHIF Togo programme, visit: www.africa-conference.com/togo/index.php/programme.
ENDS
About The Africa Hotel Investment Forum (AHIF)
AHIF is the premier hotel investment conference in Africa, attracting many prominent international hotel owners, investors, financiers, management companies and their advisers. It is organised by Bench Events (www.benchevents.com), which is known for producing, alongside Questex Travel + Hospitality and MEED Events, several top-level hotel conferences around the world including Berlin (IHIF), Dubai (AHIC), Istanbul (CATHIC) and Moscow (RHIC).
Sponsors of AHIF Togo 2016 are: Host Partners: Ministry of Commerce, Industry, Private Sector Promotion and Tourism of Togo and GroupKalyan; Platinum sponsors: AccorHotels; Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, Hilton Worldwide, Marriott Hotels International and Rwanda Development Board; Gold Sponsors: Areen Hospitality Interior Design; Colliers International, DEG; France Kitchen; Horwath HTL; Hotel Partners Africa; HVS; Hyatt; JLL; Kempinski Hotels; KinzaYapi; Louvre Hotels Group; OnlimeBusiness Communications; Source Interior Brand Architecture; Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc.; STR Global; Swiss Education Group and Wyndham Hotel Group.
ASKY Airlines are the official Airline Partner of AHIF Togo 2016.
Contacts
For further information and high resolution images, please visit http://www.africa-conference.com or contact:
- David Tarsh, Tarsh Consulting, Email: David@Tarsh.com, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7602 5262, Cel: +44 (0) 7770 816 070.
