SITHO

HISTORICAL SETTING

It results from the will of the authorities of Burkina Faso to make tourism one of the levers of economic and social development.

In view of the difficulties that African operators have in acting directly on the European tourist markets, Burkina Faso has therefore undertaken since 2004 to experiment a new approach to promote the tourism sector in Africa. The idea was to give the opportunity to Western Tour Operators to come to Africa to build their business relationships and discover by this occasion the products they will offer to their customers.

A retrospective glance allows us to realize the positive evolution of this important event in Burkina, in Africa and at the international level in terms of development of the tourism industry.

OBJECTIVES AND MISSIONS OF THE SITHO

The SITHO thus brings the tour operators of the North closer to African professionals of the tourism and hotel sector. Its main missions are :

• to present to the public the Burkinabe and sub-regional tourist offer;
• to offer professionals a framework for exchange and promotion of their products and activities;
• to create a framework for reflection on the problems of African tourism development;
• to further professionalize the tourism sector;
• to arouse in Burkinabe people the need to discover and appreciate the tourist potential of their country.

The SITHO is mainly focused on the promotion of international tourism, intra-regional tourism and tourism at the national level.