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KARIBU HII NI AWOTTA!

ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN IN TOURISM TANZANIA

AWOTTA is a non profit organisation committed to empowering women to reach their true potential, gain equality and attain financial security within the Tanzania tourism industry.

A Personal Message from

Mary C. Kalikawe, Chairperson

Thank you for visiting our website today.

Tanzania is blessed with a multitude of world class tourist attractions. In 2019 we welcomed over 1.5 million tourists to our country (contributing in excess of USD$2.5 billion to the Tanzanian economy) and today we look out onto an emerging domestic tourism market whose potential is limitless.

Through the continued development of tourism Tanzania will prosper and AWOTTA is committed to play a key role in making this happen. Women make up 50% of the population and we will work tirelessly to ensure they have a fair and equal opportunity in achieving their own aspirations as well as contribute to our country’s socio-economic goals through participation within the tourism sector.

We are driven by the popular saying “Nani kama Mama”, which means that the children of Tanzania look to the next generation of women to lay the ground that will lead to their prosperity. We are proud to embrace this tradition within our industry and I invite you to join us today in taking on this responsibility.

PLEASE JOIN US TODAY!

AWOTTA ARE COMMITTED TO DELIVERING MEMBERS, NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL TOURISM GOALS

A global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.

AWOTTA supports International Women’s Day

8th March 2020

Campaign theme: #EachforEqual

AWOTTA is committed to help achieve equality within the tourism sector as an equal world is an enabled world.

Individually, we’re all responsible for our own thoughts and actions – all day, every day.

We can actively choose to challenge stereotypes, fight bias, broaden perceptions, improve situations and celebrate women’s achievements.

Collectively, each one of us can help create a gender equal world.

Let’s all be #EachforEqual.

UN Global Report on Women in Tourism – Second Edition (2019)

I AM GENERATION EQUALITY: Realising Womens Rights

AWOTTA has just completed staging the second UWANDAE EXPO2020 (Tanzania’s premier annual Domestic Tourism EXPO), and in doing so has shown to the world the important role that women can play in bringing development to our societies.

We would like to thank the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, the Tanzania Tourist Board and Tantrade for their continual support of this event. We would also like to send a special word of thanks to all the men and women from across Tanzania, South Africa, Angola, Ethiopia, Germany and the UK whose participation made it such a success.

The African Tourism Board (ATB) chairman Mr Cuthbert Ncube and CEO Mrs Doris Wörfel flew from South Africa to join us and throughout their time, rallied support on the development of domestic tourism across Tanzania and how women’s empowerment is essential to its success. Their support for AWOTTA’s goals and objectives was unequivocal and we are delighted to announce that the ATB have extended an offer to work in partnership with AWOTTA in staging the next UWANDAE EXPO (2021), later expanding the event concept into different countries across Africa.

Photographer:Justine Kazaura

Mary Kalikawe (Chairperson AWOTTA) & Cuthbert Ncube (Chairman African Tourism Board) shake hands on an equal partnership in staging UWANDAE EXPO2021

We are honoured and proud to embrace this partnership with the ATB and for Tanzania to be the first host of such an important continental initiative. AWOTTA’s involvement will highlight women as important agents of change and also give us strength in our continuous fight for equality within our own industry. We know through conversations with members across Tanzania that exploitation of women is still rampant and multifaceted within our sector as indicated by: lower literacy levels for girls resulting in reduced work opportunites; cultural/social norms hindering career progression; unequal pay and limited access to funding; sexual harassment in the work place; the absence of separate accommodation and child care facilities for women tour guides, drivers or porters.…the list goes on and on.

AWOTTA will continue to chip away at addressing such injustices and inequalities at every opportunity, but today feel energised by the fact that UWANDAE EXPO on a continental level, will make a significant contribution in helping us achieve gender equality not only within our own country but across our great continent. The increased investment, employment, income and cooperation opportunities that UWANDAE EXPO will foster, can accelerate women and men working together in unity for many years to come.

We ask all AWOTTA members to play their part in making a gender equal world and to stand up today and make the pledge “I am generation equality”!