Airlines Association of Southern Africa backs Routes Africa 2012

Mr. Chris Zweigenthal, the Chief Executive of the Airlines Association of Southern Africa, and Mr. Gerard Brown from the Routes organization, met with Mr.

Mr. Chris Zweigenthal, the Chief Executive of the Airlines Association of Southern Africa, and Mr. Gerard Brown from the Routes organization, met with Mr. Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism & Culture during the INDABA Tourism Trade Fair in Durban, South Africa. The meeting was to discuss with the Airlines Association of Southern Africa to the coming Routes Africa 2012 conference this coming July in Seychelles.

It is the first time that Routes Africa comes to East Africa and the Indian Ocean region and the Seychelles Minister has been canvassing support for the event, which is set to provide a platform for Africa to discuss the way forward in aviation on the continent where the potential to have the biggest growth in tourism movements exists.

The Seychelles Minister St.Ange said at INDABA that Seychelles wanted not a talk shop but a discussion forum for Africa to hear each other and discuss together with airline partners who have a serious and genuine interest in Africa.

Mr. Chris Zweigenthal, the Chief Executive of the Airlines Association of Southern Africa, said in a statement issued after the meeting with Minister Alain St.Ange:

โ€œIt was a great pleasure to meet the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism & Culture at INDABA, and I enjoyed discussing our fascinating industry, as well as the opportunities which present themselves within the SADC region.

โ€œThe Airlines Association of Southern Africa supports Routes Africa 2012 to be held in Seychelles from July 8-10, 2012. Mr. Vees Lochan, Chief Operating Officer, will be representing the association at this event. We will encourage our member airlines to attend this very prestigious event. In this regard, we support the convening of a meeting between the Honorable Ministers of Tourism and other dignitaries as may be fitting with the Airline Members of the Association.

โ€œOne of our fundamental goals is to support the sustainable growth and development of airline business in the region, and the direct link between travel and tourism is an essential link to this development. Airlines are constantly looking for new opportunities and initiatives to achieve these goals in the interest of service to our customers and passengers, and I believe that such a meeting will unlock potential in these areas.โ€

The support for Routes Africa 2012 has been welcomed by Minister Alain St.Ange of the Seychelles and by Mr. Gerard Brown from the Routes organization.

The South African Tourism Minister, Mr. Marthinus van Schalkwyk, will personally be in Seychelles for Routes Africa 2012 and is one of the African leaders expected to deliver a keynote address at the July conference in Seychelles.

Seychelles is a founding member of the International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) www.tourismpartners.org and eTN is a media partner for Routes Africa.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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