Nation Reporter
10 February 2007
Nairobi — Africa will be the next centre of growth for the airline industry, a travel expert has said.
Mr Mike Gray, the president of Uniglobe Travel, a worldwide tour and travel franchise, said opportunities for growth were enormous in the continent and between it and emerging economies of India, China and Brazil.
Mr Gray, however, said proper policies that attract investment in the airline industry must be put in place for accelerated growth in the sector.
Speaking at a function, held at Tamarind Restaurant on Thursday night, Mr Gray said there was a need for airlines to create more routes and open up new destinations in the continent.
"There are far too few routes in the continent compared to Europe and North America which are almost saturated," he said.
The official said a chunk of revenue in the airline industry in the developed countries was generated within their respective continents due to numerous flights.
"The frequency of flights between various destinations is very high in Europe and North America compared to Africa and there is need to find ways of boosting air travel in Africa," said Mr Gray, who heads the franchise's sub-Saharan Africa office.
The members of Uniglobe in Kenya are Charleston, Speedbird, Holiday Bazaar, Let's go Travel, Northline, Silverbird, Fleet Travel and Falcon, boasting a workforce of more than 160 workers.
Under the franchise, the tour and travel companies are expected to implement uniform standards aimed at improving services.
Mr Gray said travel and tour firms must ensure they hired qualified personnel as the industry was highly dependent on trained manpower.
Customer service
"Technology is advancing at a fast rate and companies must ensure they have the latest software to stay ahead of competition and provide the best customer service," he said.
The official said members of a franchise could pool resources together to come up with quality software and minimise production costs.
He said travel companies must stop charging commissions for airline bookings saying the advent of on-line booking had revolutionised the industry.
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