6th HMCA Lagos 2024: Uganda, Kenya, Cameroun lead African Countries pushing biggest Hospitality Professionals Gathering in Africa

By Renn E. Offor

The 6th Hotel Managers Conference & Awards, which is a Pan African edition has continued to receive endorsements and partnerships from leading hospitality professionals across Africa with host country Nigeria followed by Uganda, Kenya, Cameroon as several other professionals across the continent  continue to push the event.

Hotel Managers Conference & Awards (HMCA) Lagos 2024 has the theme, “Innovative Strategies: Nurturing Resilience and Excellence in Guest Experience in African Hospitality” and is set to hold on the 13th & 14th July, 2024 inside the Grand African Ballroom, Lagos Continental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos State, the economic Capital of Nigeria.

Speaking about the growing acceptance of Hotel Managers Conference & Awards by hospitality professionals in Nigeria and the growing recognition and acceptance by hospitality professionals across Africa and beyond, Mr. Olugbenga Omotayo Sunday, the Convener and Managing Director of Tojum Hospitality, owners of the conference express his joy and harped on the consistency the brand has maintained over the years in keeping to the core tenets of the conference and values that it is delivering to delegates, participants and partners.

Mr. Olugbenga Omotayo Sunday, Convener, HMCA & Managing Director, Tojum Hospitality

“We are very grateful to men and women of goodwill in across Africa, who have taken it upon themselves to support and crusade for the success of Hotel Managers Conference & Awards Lagos 2024. The industry still has a long way to go. A guest’s first impression on his first arrival at a hotel is very important, so is his final assessment of the experiences he’s leaving with. And those determine if he’ll return to that facility again or not. Hence, this year’s theme will address those issues from an African perspective as we explore ways of enhancing those experiences”, Mr. Sunday insists.

From their various countries, partners who are committed to ensuring that fellow hospitality professionals in their countries commit and attend this conference are speaking.

Molly Apio, the General Manager of Arch Apartments and Hotel in Uganda, who is also the Chairperson for Hotel General Managers Association of Uganda, speaks of her views about HMCA and why she and her fellow hospitality professionals from Uganda needs to be part of it.

Molly Apio, General Manager, Arch Apartments and Hotel Uganda & Chairperson, Hotel General Managers Association of Uganda

“HMCA is a very good platform for General Managers since it aims at the capacity building of hotel  managers as well as other staff. This leads to better service delivery in the hospitality industry. I support the managers conference and the award for the year 2024 and I encourage managers in East Africa to participate in this event because of the following reasons:

“Firstly, It's a great networking event where managers from different parts of the African region will attend as well as great mentors globally. Secondly, this event is aimed at building capacity for our managers and directors on the professional ways of handling different matters for better service delivery. 

“And thirdly, this will offer exposure to some of our managers in the industry on how certain things are done in certain parts of the world hence standardization of different services offered in the hotel industry”, Molly concludes.

Mr. Amir M. Adamu, Founder/Executive Director,  Hospitality Innovation & Leadership Forum Cameroon, Certified Hospitality Trainer & Hospitality Business Consultant.

Also speaking, Mr. Amir M. Adamu, from Cameroun also noted that, “HMCA is a platform which serves as a think-tank for hotel and hospitality stakeholders on best practices, innovative strategies and ideas for better management and increased productivity within the sector”. 

Mr. Amir M. Adamu is the Founder and Executive Director of Hospitality Innovation and Leadership Forum Cameroon. He is a Certified Hospitality Trainer and Hospitality Business Consultant. 

In his word, “I am attending and will support others especially from my country to attend HMCA because of the importance of synergy amongst hospitality stakeholders towards collective productivity and problem solving”, he asserts.

From Kenya, Lydia Akunja, who is a Lecturer, Department of Hotel and Hospitality Management, Moi University-Eldoret Kenya, equally shares her thoughts and passion about HMCA Lagos 2024. 

Lydia Akunja, Lecturer, Department of Hotel and Hospitality Management, Moi University-Eldoret, Kenya & Kenya Coordinator for Sasamani Foundation.

Lydia is an active Women Leading Change and Kenya Coordinator for Sasamani Foundation.

“HMCA is the next level platform for redefining and shaping the hospitality space in Africa and globally. It is a congregation of owners, managers, consultants and academics all with a unique blend of experiences like no other. This provides an exceptional platform to share opportunities, experiences and learning while providing real solutions for Africa. HMCA annual conference and monthly master classes continues to build capacity for hoteliers and allows members to interact and showcase their cultures and best practices across the continent. It can only get better! I admire the passion and authenticity of the connections it provides to all”.

Lydia insists that, “Hotel Managers make or break the hospitality industry. They are the heartbeat of any organizations. I am a firm believer in the principles of management; and as a trained hotelier this is ‘home’ for me. There is no better way to share with peers, grow the industry and mentor budding managers than the network HMCA creates. 

“For Kenya, this is a great opportunity to benchmark with the rest of Africa and the world. Of course, the sights, sounds and taste of Nigeria is a must have experience. Lagos here we come from Kenya!” She concludes.

It is pertinent to note that HMCA has been Building a Legacy in Hospitality Business, Capacity Upgrade and Transformation in the last eight years and this 6th edition of Hotel Managers Conference & Awards would see major stakeholders and organizations associated with tourism and hospitality businesses present, specifically Nigerian Hotel and Catering Institute  (NHCI), Association of Tourism and Hospitality Consultants in Nigeria  (ATHCON), Institute for Tourism Professionals of Nigeria (ITPN),  Institute of Hospitality (IOH), Hospitality and Tourism Management Association of Nigeria, (HATMAN), HOCMAN; Women in Hospitality Nigeria (WIHN), Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN) among many others, including Delegates, Sponsors, and participants will fly into Lagos from every State in Nigeria and not less than 15 African countries for HMCA Lagos 2024 between 12th and 15th July 2024.

The Hotel Managers Conference & Awards was conceived and organized annually to build capacity in hotel Managers across Africa as we keep pushing, bridging the big gap and building capacities in hotels in Nigeria and Africa to match what obtains in other hotels Internationally, while recognizing and celebrating outstanding performances in hospitality outfits. So, the core focus is to build capacities with Hospitality experts with global relevance to draw timely knowledge for professional exploits.