Wolfgang’s East Africa report

By Wolfgang H. Thome

Renovation at Sheraton Kampala nears completion.

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SHERATON KAMPALA MOVES TOWARDS COMPLETING RENOVATIONS
A recent inspection visit to the Sheraton Kampala Hotel revealed that the main work on room refurbishment has now been nearly completed. When the remaining 68 rooms will be handed back to the hotel by the contractor a total of 216 suites and rooms have been completely refurbished and a number of additional business suites been created. The pre-renovation room count stood at over 260 rooms, many of which were turned into larger, comfortable business suites, reflecting the market trend and demand for such accommodation.

Next on their to do list, and due to be completed before the CHOGM Summit in November, will then be the popular Rhino Pub and the Hippo Grill – an outdoor dining area under canapé – at which stage the entire hotel will have been modernised and refurbished.

This weekend in fact will see the farewell bash at the Rhino Pub, which has been in existence for over 19 years now and became and remained one of the most popular evening-out spots in the city. When the all weekend party winds down the pub will be closed until at least August to allow for a complete overhaul and refurbishment. It will then reopen under a new identity and brand name and the same is expected for the Hippo Grill. Also noteworthy during the inspection visit was the visible improvement in service standards and food presentation, which Sheraton Kampala’s Director of Food and Beverages Mr. Kwashie Gbedemah, has inspired and instilled in recent months.

ROUTE PROFITABLE WITHIN THE YEAR SAYS BRANSON
While Virgin’s new routes ordinarily take several years to turn profitable, Sir Richard Branson expressed his hope that the new Nairobi route would achieve this within the first year of operation. He also confirmed that Kenya Airways would carry Virgin’s traffic into regional destinations beyond Nairobi while in turn KQ would have access to Virgin routes they do not fly to themselves out of London. Sir Richard also mentioned the possibilities of further investments of his business group in tourism and hotel services.

AYA SAGA CONTINUES
The Executive Director of the Uganda Investment Authority, Prof. Dr. Maggie Kigozi, decried the negative press and attitude towards this project, which has featured prominently in this column since it started off. However, the owners of the AYA Group have done little to make good with the media and their controversial and often misleading public statements have also brought media confidence in their project to near zero. Their latest full mouthed statements, that the stalled project needed further land, was therefore met with some incredulity and disbelief amongst industry observers and the hotel industry in particular. There was no building activity visible on the site nor any further information received, that they had found a willing co-investor to raise the project from the death bed. Watch this column for more news on how to build castles in the air.

KINGDOM HOTELS SITE SHOWS NO SIGN OF PROGRESS
The Shimoni Demonstration School and Primary School, which had to make way for Kingdom Hotel’s ambitious Kampala project, may rue still to have bent over and vacated so meekly at the time. Most buildings have since been razed to the ground and the site is lying empty and idle for months at end now without any sign of activity planned or ongoing. Government gave the site to Kingdom Hotels, hoping they would be able to build a 5star hotel for the forthcoming Commonwealth Summit, but found its hopes betrayed when – like at the proposed ‘Kampala Hilton Hotel’ – there is little to show for its generous gesture so far. Meanwhile, the same hotel group is going ahead to invest tens of millions of dollars in a long overdue upgrade of their Kenyan properties, in particular at the Mount Kenya Safari Club and the Norfolk Hotel. The group is now also said to be keener on the Asian market and has struck several deals there in the recent past, maybe loosing a little of their focus on their Ugandan project. After all, they got the land for well near free and time is theirs to choose.

MBALE GETS TOURISM ASSOCIATION
This Eastern Ugandan town on the foot of Mt. Elgon has long struggled to reclaim its former glory days of the immediate post independence era, especially in regard of tourism. While gifted with a border transcending national park – Mt. Elgon National Park also extends to the Kenyan side of the mountain – tourism took a while to take roots again and the famous Sipi Falls have for long also only been a second or third choice for foreign tourists to visit. Even local residents and Ugandans themselves have yet to embrace the East for tourism related visits.
The business community involved in tourism has now however gotten together and formed the Mt. Elgon Tourism Association, which will become part of the Uganda Tourism Association framework of upcountry tourism associations, which were formed in recent years as pressure groups vis-à-vis council or district administrations, but also to be effectively represented at national level and receive a fair share of resources and attention.

About one dozen or so district tourism associations now exist and while having varying levels of activity have nevertheless become effective local advocacy and lobby institutions for tourism related interests of the business community.

SERENGETI ‘DEVELOPMENT’ REARS ITS UGLY HEAD AGAIN
Not even a year after defeating ‘proposals’ to build a resort in the heart of one of the world’s most famous national parks, the Serengeti in Northern Tanzania, more such ludicrous proposals have once again emerged. A major road construction proposal goes alongside with the intended building of an airport (note: airport, not airstrip) to facilitate greater arrivals into the fragile ecosystem. The planned road however is expected to substantially disrupt the migration pattern of the wildebeest and zebras, which forms an annual cycle and is the basis for much of the tourism traffic into this park and the adjoining Masai Mara Game Reserve across the border in Kenya. Major supporter and regular donor of Tanzania National Parks Authority, the Frankfurt Zoological Society, has already voiced strongest possible concern and objections to the plans, which are expected to be turned down like all previous such unacceptable proposals.

CELTEL OFFERS TOURISTS ONE NETWORK ACROSS EASTERN AFRICA
Arriving visitors to any of the three East African countries can now make and receive calls across the region on the Celtel network, which allows for reduced communication costs compared with traditional roaming. Prepaid SIM cards are widely available, including at the main airports of the region. Celtel has now expanded this service to the Congo DR, Congo Brazzaville and Gabon and is intending to add at least another dozen of countries within their African operation to the scheme. Expected to join in due course are also Rwanda to make the entire East African region accessible for calls at local charges and without roaming fees.

Printable Version | published Jun 08, 2007

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