Sub-Saharan Africa outpaces N Africa’s hotel development

INTERNATIONAL and
regional hotel chains are
signing more deals in subSaharan
Africa (SSA) than
in North Africa, according
to a survey by Lagos-based
consultancy, W Hospitality
Group. This is the first time
SSA has outpaced North
Africa in signing the most
deals since the survey
began in 2009.
The number of branded
hotel rooms planned for
SSA has risen consistently
since 2011, from 13 700
in 2011 to 23 283 rooms
in 2014, while the number
of hotel deals signed has
also increased sharply,
from 77 hotels in 2010 to
142 hotels in 2014. This
represents growth of 84%
over the five-year period,
and a compound annual
growth rate of 13%.
The 49 countries that
make up SSA have a
development pipeline that
is over 40% greater than
the five countries in North
Africa. However, the survey
found less than 60% of
the rooms in the pipeline
for SSA were under
construction, compared
with 75% in North Africa.
“The big story this year
is a dramatic surge in
interest from the hotel
chains in sub-Saharan
Africa,” says Trevor Ward,
md of W Hospitality.
“The continent generally
has never been an easy
place to do business and
is likely to remain more
challenging than Europe
or even China,” he says.
“However, the lack of
quality hotel rooms, not
just in the capitals but also
in the secondary cities,
is so marked that the
major international chains
now cannot ignore the
opportunity.”
“There are three trends
we are observing in Africa,
which act like a virtuous
circle – cessation of
conflict, economic growth
and investor confidence
– and at present, that
virtuous circle has very
positive momentum,”
says Jonathan Worsley,
chairman of Bench Events,
which organises the Africa
Hotel Investment Forum.
This year’s survey is
based on the contributions
from 27 hotel chains
with 60 brands between
them. Of these 27 hotel
chains, 24 are already
operating in Africa, with
approximately 84 000
rooms. The pipeline of new
deals therefore represents
almost 50% of the branded
supply