The Global Tourism Forum Angola Investment Summit 2026, held from 17–19 June in Luanda, concluded with strong international participation, high-level political engagement, and a significant pipeline of investment-oriented agreements designed to accelerate Angola’s emergence as one of Africa’s most promising tourism and hospitality investment destinations.
Organized by the World Tourism Forum Institute (WTFI) in cooperation with Angola’s tourism leadership, the summit brought together nearly 1,500 delegates, including heads of state, ministers, investors, international financial institutions, global hotel brands, destination developers, tourism organizations, and private-sector leaders.
The summit opened with a welcome cocktail at Forte Velho Restaurant, Fortaleza de São Miguel, featuring opening remarks by Bulut Bağcı, President of the World Tourism Forum Institute, H.E. Shaikha Al Nuwais, Secretary-General of UN Tourism, and H.E. Márcio Daniel, Minister of Tourism of Angola.
The official opening ceremony on 18 June, titled “Shaping the Future of Tourism in Emerging Destinations,” featured addresses by Luís Manuel da Fonseca Nunes, Governor of Luanda Province, Gloria Guevara, President & CEO of WTTC, Bulut Bağcı, H.E. Shaikha Al Nuwais, and H.E. Márcio Daniel. The ceremony was further elevated by the participation of H.E. João Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola, who delivered the Presidential Welcoming Address.
The summit also welcomed regional presidential participation, including H.E. Daniel Francisco Chapo, President of Mozambique, and H.E. Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, reinforcing the event’s importance as a continental platform for tourism-led economic development and regional cooperation.
A major highlight of the event was the signing of 11 Memorandums of Understanding, covering a broad range of priorities including foreign direct investment, destination development, hospitality expansion, sustainable tourism, project finance, education, and human resource development for Angola’s tourism sector.
These agreements reflected a practical investment roadmap aimed at moving beyond dialogue and into implementation.
“Angola has demonstrated that tourism can become a serious pillar of economic diversification when political will, investment readiness, and international partnerships come together,” said Bulut Bağcı, President of the World Tourism Forum Institute.
Bagci said further, “The scale of participation and the number of agreements signed in Luanda show that global investors are increasingly looking at Angola not only as an emerging destination, but as a long-term investment opportunity.”
A key milestone of the GTF Angola Investment Summit was the official handover of the “Tourism Doing Business – Investing in Angola” guidelines by H.E. Shaikha Al Nuwais, Secretary-General of UN Tourism, to H.E. João Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola.
The handover symbolized the strong institutional partnership between Angola and UN Tourism, while underlining the country’s growing commitment to positioning tourism as a strategic pillar of economic diversification and investment attraction.
The guidelines provide international investors with a structured framework to better understand Angola’s tourism opportunities, priority development areas, and long-term investment potential.
The summit’s program placed strong emphasis on investment, infrastructure and hospitality development.
Global and regional hospitality groups and investment leaders participating in the summit included representatives from Marriott International, Hilton Hotels, TUI Hotels & Resorts, Radisson Hotels, KASADA Capital Management, Aventra Hospitality, Mitrelli Angola, V-Marine Bahrain, NURU, and SHL Schweizerische Hotelfachschule Luzern.
Key discussions explored sustainable capital, hotel development, integrated tourism destinations, connectivity, MICE tourism, blue economy opportunities, coastal tourism, public-private partnerships, sovereign funds, development finance, and the role of tourism in national economic strategy.
The event also featured the official presentation of “Tourism Doing Business – Investing in Angola,” an investment guideline developed with the support of UN Tourism.
The guideline positions Angola’s tourism sector through opportunities in ecotourism, nature tourism, coastal development, hotel investment, resorts, cultural tourism, and historical tourism, while offering investors a clearer framework for understanding the country’s project pipeline and investment environment.
High-level sessions included the Presidential Dialogue: Tourism as a National Economic Strategy, moderated by Victoria Rubadiri, CNN Connecting Africa Correspondent, as well as the Ministerial Dialogue: Tourism, Investment and National Development, which brought together senior figures including Patricia de Lille, Minister of Tourism of South Africa, H.E. Francisca Tatchouop Belobe, Commissioner for Economic Development, Trade, Tourism, Industry & Minerals at the African Union Commission, Abufaz Garayev, former Minister of Tourism of Azerbaijan, and Hon. Najib Balala, former Minister of Tourism and Wildlife of Kenya.
The second day focused on implementation, destination development and project matchmaking, including sessions on scalable tourism destinations, floating tourism assets, integrated resorts, connectivity, African markets, and MICE tourism.
The summit concluded with the WTFI Investment Roadmap 2026–2030, outlining a forward-looking framework for transforming summit outcomes into long-term investment, policy and development initiatives.
With nearly 1,500 participants and 11 MoUs signed, the GTF Angola Investment Summit 2026 marked a significant milestone in Angola’s tourism development journey, strengthening the country’s position as an emerging investment hub and reinforcing tourism as a strategic engine for economic diversification, job creation and international cooperation.
In his Presidential Welcoming Address, H.E. João Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola, underlined tourism as a strategic pillar of Angola’s economic diversification agenda and a powerful instrument for inclusive growth, job creation, private-sector participation and regional development. He emphasized Angola’s determination to reduce dependence on oil by expanding high-multiplier sectors such as tourism, highlighting the country’s exceptional natural, cultural and ecological assets, from its coastline, rivers, lakes, parks and reserves to its historic heritage and community traditions.
President Lourenço also pointed to major infrastructure improvements—including the new António Agostinho Neto International Airport, the Lobito Corridor, the upcoming Luanda Convention Centre, and expanding energy, road, rail, port, telecommunications and healthcare infrastructure—as key enablers of Angola’s tourism transformation.
Addressing international investors, he reaffirmed that Angola offers a reliable long-term investment environment, legal security and committed partners, while positioning tourism not only as an economic opportunity but also as a bridge for peace, dialogue, cultural understanding and international cooperation.
In his address, H.E. Márcio Daniel, Minister of Tourism of Angola, presented tourism as one of the cornerstones of Angola’s economic diversification strategy and emphasized that the country is entering a decisive phase in its tourism development cycle.
He stated that Angola is no longer positioning tourism merely as a future potential, but as a national economic priority capable of generating employment, attracting investment, creating infrastructure, strengthening services, and projecting the country internationally.
Highlighting Angola’s 1,600-kilometre Atlantic coastline, the Namibe Desert, Calandula Falls, the Okavango region, national parks, rivers, forests, culture, music, gastronomy and hospitality, Minister Daniel invited investors to look beyond Angola’s underground wealth and recognize the value of its natural, cultural and human assets.
He also underlined key progress, including the launch of Visit Angola: The Rhythm of Life, Meet in Angola: The Meeting Room in Africa, the opening of the Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport, the upcoming Luanda Convention Centre, and more than €500 million in approved investments for integrated infrastructure in priority tourism areas.
Addressing investors directly, he described Angola as an early-stage tourism market with significant room for growth, valuation and first-mover advantage, stressing that the summit was designed not only for dialogue but for decisions, partnerships and concrete investment outcomes.
In her address, H.E. Shaikha Al Nuwais, Secretary-General of UN Tourism, emphasized that Angola is entering a new phase of international confidence, where tourism is no longer seen only as a sector but as a driver of prosperity, opportunity and national transformation.
Referring to President João Lourenço’s leadership, she highlighted Angola’s progress through Planatur, the mobilization of more than €8 billion, visa-free access for citizens of more than 90 countries, and the Luanda Ministerial Statement as clear signals of the country’s commitment to tourism development and regional air connectivity.
She noted that the presence of global hospitality brands, tourism investors and business leaders in Luanda reflected growing confidence in Angola’s ambition and investment potential.
H.E. Al Nuwais also underlined the urgent need to close Africa’s tourism investment gap, stating that while potential is widely distributed, investment is not, and reaffirmed UN Tourism’s commitment to helping bridge governments and the private sector through investment guidelines, forums and strategic partnerships.
Positioning Angola as “ready, ambitious and open for business,” she concluded that Angola is not waiting for the future, but actively building it, with its tourism potential now becoming a reality.
