Paper short abstract:

In this paper, we discuss the role of tourism in thedevelopment of Africa. Indeed, tourism can play a significant role in the socio-economic development of the continent. we will also try to provide some answers likely to contribute to enriching the reflection on this sector.

Paper long abstract:

In this paper, we discuss the role of tourism in the socio-economic development of Africa. Indeed, tourism plays a significant role in economic progress because it has a great influence on job creation, wages, , consumption, inflation, investments and the balance of payments.

In these conditions, what is the position of tourism in the face of the great changes that Africa is undergoing? Does the tourism sector have a socio-economic and financial influence on economic development? What are the main factors of growth in the tourism sector on the fringes of globalization and the challenges of the third millennium? These are some of the questions to which we will try to provide some answers likely to contribute to enriching the reflection on the prospects open to a long marginalized economic sector.

Today, it appears that governments in Africa through adopting a strategy based on giving tourism the means to enable it to compete and to be able to glean shares in international markets. In this perspective, the professionalization of the sector, the adoption of modern management methods, the encouragement of open partnerships for domestic and foreign private capital, and the use of new mechanisms in the field of tourism marketing , constitute a priority for Africa to ensure a successful entry into the international tourism market. These are the conditions that tourism will strengthen its contribution to the development of the African continent and will the principles of the NEPAD program for balanced and sustainable economic and social development.