Gambia Targets Nigerian Market with Bold MICE Push at Akwaaba 2026 in Lagos
The Gambia is intensifying its efforts to secure a larger share of Nigeria's lucrative travel market, with the Gambia Tourism Board (GTBoard) confirming its participation in the 2026 edition of the Akwaaba Travel Market in Lagos. Scheduled for 13 to 15 September 2026, this influential travel trade expo will bring together tourism, aviation, and hospitality professionals from across Africa and beyond, offering the small West African nation a strategic stage on which to showcase its evolving tourism proposition.
For the Gambian delegation, Lagos represents far more than a routine promotional exercise. It is an opportunity to place the country's tourism products directly in front of Nigerian tour operators, travel agencies, airlines, hoteliers, investors, and event planners. Ahead of the main expo, the delegation will host a Destination Gambia Promotional Cocktail Reception on 12 September, creating an intimate setting for meaningful business conversations. The reception is expected to attract logistics companies, aviation stakeholders, and corporate travel professionals, giving the Gambian team an early platform to build relationships and encourage visitor traffic from Nigeria and other African markets.
A central pillar of The Gambia's campaign is its ambition to position itself as a serious contender in the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) sector. Long celebrated as a leisure and beach destination, the country is now signalling a strategic shift towards attracting business events, corporate retreats, exhibitions, and professional gatherings. The global MICE market continues to expand rapidly, and destinations able to offer suitable venues, quality accommodation, reliable transport, and skilled hospitality services stand to benefit significantly. At Akwaaba, Team Gambia will highlight its readiness to host such events while opening the door to new commercial partnerships with Nigerian counterparts.
Leading the delegation will be the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Honourable Abdoulie Jobe, joined by Deputy Permanent Secretary Mrs. Amie Njie, GTBoard Chairman Mr. Momodou Bamba Saho, and Director General Mrs. Ida Jeng Njie. Industry stakeholders from the private sector will complete the delegation, ensuring that both government policy and commercial interests are well represented during business-to-business engagements. For the GTBoard, the goal reaches beyond showcasing attractions; it is about connecting Gambian tourism businesses with trade professionals who can package the destination, drive new visitor flows, and generate sustained bookings.
Nigeria's importance to this strategy cannot be overstated. As one of West Africa's largest and most dynamic travel markets, it offers a vast population of leisure travellers, a booming corporate sector, and a mature travel trade ecosystem. By deepening its presence in Lagos, The Gambia hopes to convert visibility into tangible business, including new tour packages, corporate travel arrangements, and destination management collaborations. The MICE angle, in particular, opens doors to Nigerian companies and professional associations that routinely organise conferences and incentive trips abroad.
The wider context here is the growing appetite for intra-African tourism. Destinations across the continent are increasingly recognising that African travellers themselves represent one of the most sustainable and promising growth segments, reducing dependence on long-haul source markets. For sub-Saharan travel professionals, this trend translates into fresh opportunities to build packages combining multiple African destinations, cross-sell services, and forge cross-border alliances. The Gambia's proactive engagement at Akwaaba mirrors what is likely to become the norm rather than the exception in years to come.
Akwaaba itself has grown into one of West Africa's most respected travel trade platforms, providing destination marketing organisations with direct access to industry buyers. As the Gambian delegation prepares for its Lagos mission, the message to Africa's travel community is unmistakable: The Gambia wants stronger trade relationships, more Nigerian visitors, and a meaningful seat at the table in Africa's business and leisure tourism future.
