Skift Take
Despite its infrastructure challenges and a reputation for red tape, the world’s biggest hotel brands can’t seem to get enough of Africa. With thousands of rooms in the development pipeline, African cities will soon be festooned with a slew of international brands. It’s good news for global travelers and local economies alike.
Editor's Note: Gateway is a Skift series featuring first-hand, original stories from our correspondents embedded in cities around the world. The logo reflects where the correspondent is based and not necessarily the article's focus. Read about the series here.
Supply and demand. It’s as simple as that. In Africa right now, the demand for international-standard hotel rooms far outstrips supply. Nine countries in Africa currently have no branded hotels at all, a further eight have just a single chain hotel, and nearly half the countries on the continent have two or fewer international brands to offer.
So little wonder that the world’s leading hotel brands are engaged in a 21st-century scramble for Africa. Across the continent more than 417 hotels are in the development pipeline, adding upwards of 72,000 rooms to hotel inventory from Lagos to Cape Town.
Those figures come from the 2017 Hotel Chain Development Pipelines in Africa report,
