Uganda has graduated 45 professional conference organisers who have undergone a 12 week training in preparing Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) in accordance with international standards.
The graduates were passed out on Friday during a function held at Hotel Africana in Kampala and organized by Uganda Tourism Board.
“Whereas Uganda is now ranked seventh most preferred MICE destination on the African continent, our target is to become number five for now. If you are number 7 out of 54 countries, you need to celebrate,” UTB deputy CEO, Bradford Ochieng said.
He said Uganda has taken great strides, moving from the 13th position the country held in 2019 but said the best is yet to come.
“This has reawakened us. Let us invest in this space for the good of Destination Uganda. Though Uganda is not doing badly as a destination, we should not celebrate because we can do better.”
He said once the MICE sector becomes big, the country can earn up to $100 million .
Henry Bukenya, the Business Development Officer of the Uganda Convention Bureau (UCB), says the training equipped participants with the required skills but also ensured they don’t look at each other as competitors but rather partners to help push the country’s MICE agenda.
He asked the graduates to put the skills learnt into practice.
One of the graduates, Sarah Kagingo, the vice chairperson of the Private Sector Foundation-Uganda (PSFU) said the training will not only benefit her personally but the country at large.
“Everyone is now waiting to see what difference we are going to make now that we have now become professionals. You really now have to cash in on this sector without any excuses.”
Uganda has continued to position itself as Africa’s premier MICE destination.
From hosting the Non Aligned Movement and G77 plus China summits in January this year, Uganda has proved its capable of hosting several international conferences , meetings and exhibitions.
Uganda will jointly host the 2027 African nations Cup which will among others draw a number of visitors to the country christened the Pearl of Africa due to its immense beauty.