GLOBAL UPDATE : DEVELOPMENT
capital
THE OF Africa
Addis Ababa ’ s status as the administrative headquarters of the African Union and United Nations organizations — not to mention Ethiopia ’ s growing economy — are driving hotel development .
The percentage of leisure travelers is low , and Ethiopia ’ s hotel pipeline is almost exclusively in Addis Ababa , its capital city . However , the increasing stream of business travelers and conference attendees and a lack of quality supply has the city ’ s branded hotels charging premium rates and developers breaking ground on new hotels .
“ Addis Ababa has become quite expensive ,” says Trevor Ward , managing director of W Hospitality Group , Lagos , Nigeria . “ Occupancies are high , at 75 % to 80 %, with an ADR of US $ 200 and upward .”
The Radisson Blu Hotel , Addis Ababa , located next to the United
Nations Conference Centre
AS THE AFRICAN UNION RISES , SO DO NEW HOTELS AND ADR IN ADDIS ABABA .
By Nathan Greenhalgh , associate editor
New projects in Addis Ababa include a two-hotel property under the Novotel and Ibis brands of Accor . The developer is an affiliate of Kuwait ’ s M . A . Kharafi Group . Sunshine Construction , Addis Ababa , also is building a hotel under a Courtyard by Marriott franchise agreement .
“ At the moment there are close to 35 hotel development projects underway from 2-star to 5-star level in Ethiopia ,” says Neway Berhanu , managing director of Calibra Hospitality Consultancy , Addis Ababa .
The latest branded property to open is the Radisson Blu Addis Ababa , developed by Emerald Addis plc . The 204-room hotel launched in January , and Rezidor Hotel Group , Brussels , says it is seeing increased occupancy every month .
“ The restaurant and meetings and events are especially performing well ,” says Mark Willis , area vice president , Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa , Rezidor Hotel Group .
Addis Ababa features two other branded properties , Sheraton Addis and Hilton Addis Ababa . The rest of the city ’ s hotels are mostly properties with fewer than 80 rooms and significantly lower rates .
Potential for development Although Ethiopia features eight UNESCO World Heritage sites , political and economic turmoil kept it off the radars of most international tourists .
However , Charisma Ecology recently announced plans to build 13 resorts in previously undeveloped areas of Ethiopia . In the meantime , the country ’ s economic growth is continuing , with The Economist Intelligence Unit forecasting 8 % gross domestic product growth for the current fiscal year .
Ethiopian Airlines is a member of the Star Alliance , and Addis Ababa ’ s Bole International Airport offers direct flights to major cities such as London , Beijing and Dubai . Arrivals at Bole have nearly quadrupled to 468,305 in 2010 from the level a decade earlier . “ Although the U . S ., U . K ., China and Germany are the top source countries , visitors from Africa as a whole are in the majority , by a small margin , ahead of European visitors ,” Ward says . “ This can be attributed to the strength of Ethiopian Airlines . The Ethiopian diaspora has also increased its traffic back to the country , as the country improves and is more conducive for inward investment .”
The Ethiopian government also has implemented tax incentives for hotel developers . “ The government is providing incentives like duty-free privileges for importing of construction materials and FF & E ,” Berhanu says .
The African Union continues to become more institutionalized and draw more business travelers to Addis Ababa as well . The US $ 200 million , 2,500-capacity African Union Conference Center opened in January in the city , built with assistance from China .
12 HOTELS June 2012 www . hotelsmag . com