TOURISM

New Delhi, India | AFP |  India has the world’s fastest growing passenger airline industry, expanding at an annual rate of around 20 percent. Here are some facts and figures: – How many Indians fly – Nearly 90 million people in the financial year that ended in March 31 2016, …

Paris, France | AFP |  Baboons make sounds that are similar to the vowels a,e,i,o and u, researchers said Wednesday, suggesting that some monkeys have had the physical capacity for language for millions of years. The findings in the journal PLOS ONE add a new dimension to the long-running debate …

The Ministry of Tourism has appointed national chess champion Phiona Mutesi and her coach Robert Katende as ambassadors of Uganda’s tourism across the world. Unveiling the two at the ministry head quarters at Rwenzori House Kampala, State Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities Godfrey Kiwanda Ssuubi says the two helped …

Beijing, China | AFP |  China will ban all domestic ivory trade and processing by the end of 2017, state media reported Friday, in a move hailed by activists as a “game changer” for African elephants. African ivory is highly sought after in China where it is seen as a …

Burning ivory, waging war: world battles poaching in 2016 Nairobi, Kenya | AFP |  It was one of the most momentous events in the battle against poaching: 11 giant pyres of elephant tusks going up in flames in Kenya as the world looked on. The largest-ever destruction of ivory, which …

Bethlehem, Palestinian Territories | AFP | Pilgrims on Saturday thronged Bethlehem for Christmas Eve as Europeans worked up some holiday spirit despite tight security in the shadow of the Berlin market attack. Crowds of Palestinians and tourists flocked to Bethlehem’s Manger Square near the Church of the Nativity, ahead of …

  When a group of endangered mountain gorillas from the Rwanda side of the Virunga Mountains which had migrated to the DR Congo side returned recently, one group of conservationists was overjoyed – and they showed it in a blog on Dec.5. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, which protects about …

ATC News by Wolfgang H. Thome Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Tourism Mr. Najib Balala has officially launched the construction of a dedicated cruise ship terminal at the Port of Mombasa. The estimated cost of 350 million Kenya Shillings, equivalent to about 35 million US Dollars, will be funded in part …

Banjul, Gambia | AFP | The cocktails keep flowing by the pool on the tourist strip, but in The Gambia’s markets many African migrant traders are packing up their businesses and heading home. The international community is piling pressure on President Yahya Jammeh to leave power after 22 years and …

Where tourists learn firsthand about Rwanda When tourists come to Rwanda, they want to experience something different. That is why we have come up with different programs to ensure visitors who come to us go back with something they are going to remember for a long time, writes Joseph Ondiek …