Biggest misconceptions people have of African Tourism – Ola Wright, WATO founder

• We must stop treating entertainment as separate from tourism

Ola Wright, Chief Executive Officer of the West Africa Tourism Organisation (WATO), is the convener of the recently concluded AeroWest 2026 Summit in Lagos, with the theme, “Financing Connectivity: Unlocking Aviation and Tourism Growth in West and Central Africa.

She is championing stronger collaboration between the aviation and tourism sectors to unlock Africa’s vast economic potential. She believes the continent’s tourism industry must look beyond traditional attractions and embrace the power of entertainment, culture and creativity.

In this interview, Wright speaks on Africa’s tourism misconceptions, the urgent need for improved connectivity, the untapped potential of Nigerian entertainment and her vision for a more integrated African tourism market. She also reflects on her upbringing between Nigeria and the United Kingdom.

What would success look like for you personally after AeroWest 2026? Is it another summit, or are you looking for concrete routes, investments, tourism packages and partnerships to emerge from it?

For me, success is not measured by how many people attended the summit or whether we hold another one. It is measured by what happens after the summit.

I would like to see new air routes established, existing routes consolidated and expanded, and stronger connectivity between destinations within Africa and between Africa and the Caribbean. I would also like to see a significant increase in well-designed tour packages, particularly multi-destination West African packages and Africa–Caribbean travel experiences.

I can confirm that significant partnerships and business discussions have already emerged from AeroWest 2026—between governments, the public and private sectors, airlines, tourism organisations, investors and other private-sector stakeholders. Some of these partnerships and deals will be announced shortly.

For WATO itself, one partnership that has already emerged is with the International Human Rights Protection Service (IHRPS). The certificate of partnership was formally presented to us by the West Africa Special Envoy of the IHRPS.

So, for me, the real test of AeroWest is conversion: turning conversations into routes, investment, products, partnerships and measurable economic opportunities.

What is the biggest misconception people have about African tourism?

I don’t think there is just one misconception, but two stand out.

The first is that Africa is a country. Africa is a continent of 54 countries, with enormous diversity in its people, cultures, landscapes, cuisines, histories, economies and tourism experiences. Treating Africa as a single destination does a great disservice to the richness and diversity of the continent.

The second is the idea that African tourism is primarily about safari and wildlife.

Safari is an important part of Africa’s tourism offering, but Africa is so much more than that. We have some of the world’s most fascinating cultures and civilisations, extraordinary music and entertainment, gastronomy, fashion, festivals, beaches, mountains, deserts, architecture, heritage sites, adventure tourism, wellness, business events and creative industries.

If we want Africa to capture a much greater share of global tourism, we need to tell the full African tourism story.

You have travelled extensively across the region. Which African destination do you think is seriously underrated for tourism and entertainment—and why?

‎Several African destinations are seriously underrated, particularly in West Africa. Senegal and Nigeria immediately come to mind.

Senegal has an extraordinary combination of culture, history, music, gastronomy and beautiful beaches. It has produced some of Africa’s most influential musicians and has a very strong live-music culture. There is a rhythm and cultural energy there that makes it a compelling destination.

Nigeria is another obvious example. Nigerian entertainment—particularly music, film and fashion—has become a global phenomenon. Afrobeats and Nollywood have created enormous international interest in the country and in Nigerian culture. Yet Nigeria’s tourism assets have not benefited from that global visibility to the extent they could.

Nigeria has extraordinary heritage, cultural festivals, beaches, wildlife, landscapes, gastronomy and historic sites, as well as one of the continent’s most dynamic entertainment industries.

The challenge is not a lack of attractions. It is about turning those assets into accessible, investable and marketable tourism products—supported by the right infrastructure, connectivity, destination management and consistent policy implementation.

That is where I believe there is enormous untapped potential.

If you had to sell Nigeria to a first-time international visitor using only three experiences—one musical, one cultural and one culinary—which three would you choose?

That is actually a very difficult question because Nigeria has so many possibilities. But if I had to choose one period rather than three isolated experiences, I would say: come to Nigeria in December.

December brings together the three things you are asking about—and much more.

For music and entertainment, you have the extraordinary Detty December atmosphere in Lagos, including major concerts such as The Experience, alongside performances by some of Nigeria’s biggest and internationally recognised artists.

For culture, I would look beyond Lagos to experiences such as the Ojude Oba Festival in Ijebu-Ode or one of Nigeria’s spectacular traditional Durbars, depending on the timing of the visit. These are not simply performances for tourists; they are living expressions of Nigerian culture, identity, history and community.

And for food, Lagos alone offers an extraordinary culinary journey—from traditional Nigerian cuisine to contemporary restaurants reinterpreting Nigerian ingredients and flavours.

So my three experiences would actually be music, living culture and Nigerian food—but experienced as part of a wider December journey through Nigeria.

That is the point: Nigeria should not be sold as a single attraction. It should be sold as a collection of experiences that can be packaged together.

If connectivity problems were solved tomorrow, what would you like to see happen in Africa within the next five years?

If we genuinely solved the connectivity problem, I would like to see a fundamental transformation in the way Africans and international visitors travel around the continent.

First, I would expect greater competition and better connectivity to contribute to more affordable airfares. I would particularly like to see the growth of reliable no-frills and low-cost air services within Africa, making regional travel more accessible to ordinary Africans as well as international visitors.

But connectivity alone is not enough. I would like airlines, accommodation providers and knowledgeable, established tour operators to work together to create affordable, bookable, multi-destination packages.

I would also like governments to put in place practical policies and standards that make it easier to travel across borders, invest in tourism and operate tourism businesses.

And we need to invest in the fundamentals: roads, power, airports, digital infrastructure, tourism facilities and human-capital development.

Ultimately, I would like to see Africans being able to travel more easily within Africa, and international visitors being able to experience several African destinations on the same trip without unnecessary cost, complexity or bureaucracy.

Do you believe Africa has a tourism branding problem, a connectivity problem, a governance problem—or all three?

Unfortunately, I believe we have elements of all three.

We have a branding problem because Africa is still too often marketed as a single destination or reduced to a narrow set of images and experiences. Individual destinations need stronger, more differentiated brands, while also benefiting from regional and multi-country marketing.

We have a connectivity problem because it can sometimes be easier or cheaper to travel outside Africa than to travel between neighbouring African countries. That limits tourism flows, business, investment and regional integration.

And we have a governance and policy implementation problem in some destinations. Good tourism strategies are not enough. They have to be implemented consistently, with the infrastructure, investment environment, standards and institutional capacity needed to support them.

But I would also emphasise that these are interconnected. You cannot build a strong destination brand if people cannot get there easily, and connectivity alone will not create tourism demand if the destination is not properly developed, marketed and managed.

That is why WATO’S work in regional cooperation is so important.

Finally, if you could send one message to African governments, airlines and investors about the connection between entertainment and tourism, what would you tell them?

I would tell them: stop treating entertainment as separate from tourism. Entertainment is tourism infrastructure.

Music, film, fashion, festivals, sport, food and the creative industries are powerful reasons for people to travel. People don’t just travel to see places; they travel to experience culture, participate in events, meet people and feel something.

Look at the global influence of Afrobeats, Nollywood and African fashion. These industries are already creating curiosity and demand for Africa. We need to convert that interest into tourism.

Governments should therefore see entertainment and the creative industries as part of their destination-development strategy. Airlines should work with tourism boards, event organisers, hotels and tour operators to create travel packages around major events. And investors should recognise that festivals, concerts, cultural experiences and entertainment districts can generate significant tourism, hospitality, aviation and wider economic activity.

If we connect our music, culture, entertainment, gastronomy and heritage with our tourism products, we can create compelling reasons for people to travel across Africa—and, importantly, to travel within Africa.

My message is simple: Africa does not have a shortage of stories, talent or experiences. We need to make them easier to reach, easier to buy and easier for the world to discover.

Could you tell us a bit about your growing up?

I grew up in UK and Nigeria. I’ve always shuttled, you know, here I’m in Nigeria, then in the UK, Nigeria, then in the UK.

I schooled in both countries. I finished my O-Levels in the UK. So, ever since, all the other education, I’ve been in the UK, college, university, post-graduates, everything in the UK.

How was growing up in the UK then as a teenager? 

My family’s been more British. My grandfather was British to the core. He went to the UK at the age of three in 1903. He was called to bar at the prestigious Inner Temple in Melbourne in 1922, at the age of 22, a black man, a Nigerian, an African, you know, in those days. My grandfather and his two siblings then had a white governess, governess as a nanny, a governess working for the parents. So, you know, that’s my background.

As a teenager in the UK, it’s very interesting. I mean, there were only few, you know, black people in school, I remember the black students, we knew each other because at that time, I mean, there wasn’t a lot of black people around. There, there, definitely were not a lot of Africans or Nigerians in the school and whenever we saw an African, so to say, you know, we knew that, okay, yes, we had to stick together. And I remember in my school, I think we only had two Nigerians.

And I remember there was a Nigerian teacher, Mrs Adebayo. She actually taught in my school, but there wasn’t a lot. So, whenever we had an African, we kind of, like, stuck together. But there was not even a lot of Nigerians then in my school. Not like now that you would see a Nigerian or an African everywhere. Schools and colleges and universities now are full of Nigerians.

Then we had Nigerians in colleges and universities, but it just wasn’t a lot like this. I believe that the UK also really opened up in terms of immigration, you know, such as entry requirements and all the rest.