Africa Legacy Summit Begins Today Amid Calls For Stronger Collaboration in Hospitality Sector

The Managing Director of Eko Hotels & Suites, Ghassan Faddoul, has called for stronger collaboration and better connectivity across Africa to unlock the continent’s hospitality and tourism potential as the Africa Legacy Summit begins today in Lagos.
The two-day summit, holding on May 15 and 16, is bringing together policymakers, investors, hospitality operators, and tourism stakeholders to discuss the future of African hospitality, tourism, and economic collaboration.
Speaking ahead of the summit, Faddoul said Africa possesses the culture, creativity, history, and human capital needed to become a major global hospitality and tourism destination, but stressed that collaboration among African countries and businesses remains critical.
“We need to collaborate with other African countries and nations to bring Africa as a destination. We are rich in our history, we are rich in our culture, we are rich in our capacity, in the human capital of this continent. This is our focus for this legacy summit, and this is why we wanted to bring all together within the industry, outside the industry, to see how we can plan and put a roadmap in the future,” he said.
He added that Africa must begin to harness and develop its own potential rather than exporting opportunities abroad.
“We want to stop exporting our potential to the west. We can develop our own country and our own nation and our own city and our own country. And we can become more than anywhere else in the world. We have the potential. We have the capacity. We have the culture. We have the history,” he stated.
According to him, the summit, organised as part of Eko Hotels’ 50th anniversary celebration, is designed to create a practical roadmap for the future of Africa’s hospitality industry while encouraging investment in youth development and entrepreneurship.
He noted that Eko Hotels has consistently promoted collaboration through initiatives such as the Tropical Christmas Wonderland, which partnered with Nigerian brands including Zenith Bank, Maltina, and Nigerian Breweries.
Also speaking ahead of the summit, the General Manager of Eko Hotels & Suites, Danny Kioupouroglou, raised concerns over limited intra-African flight connectivity and restrictive travel policies, warning that they continue to hinder hospitality and tourism growth across the continent.
According to Kioupouroglou, the number of flights operating between European countries exceeds the total number of flights within Africa, a situation he described as damaging to trade, tourism, and regional integration.
“If you open Sky Scanner and compare flights within Africa to flights across Europe, the difference is shocking. The number of flights between European countries is more than the total number of flights within Africa,” he said.
He also criticised visa restrictions across African countries, noting that such barriers discourage movement and economic growth within the continent.
Danny urged African governments to create enabling environments for private businesses by addressing issues such as multiple taxation, regulatory bottlenecks, and inadequate investment in tourism and hospitality infrastructure.
According to him, the Africa Legacy Summit is expected to generate practical ideas and policy recommendations aimed at strengthening hospitality and tourism industries across Nigeria and the wider African continent.