By: Gerhard Van Der Merwe
Despite launching the Namibia Convention Bureau last year to position our country as a destination for MICE – Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions, the country is still struggling to attract international conferences.
According to the Bureau, here’s why we’re struggling:
🔹 We have only one certified conference organiser in the country
🔹 International organisers don’t trust local event delivery
🔹 Namibia holds just 2.2% of Africa’s MICE market (vs. SA’s 30%)
In direct response to these challenges, the Namibia Tourism Board hosted its first-ever MICE training workshop in Swakopmund—a much-needed move to start addressing the gaps.
Ironically, at the same time, Swakopmund hosted the AFI Global Policy Forum, with over 800 attendees.
But here’s the catch: Swakopmund couldn’t accommodate 800 people.
A tent had to be erected just to make the event possible.
If we can’t comfortably host a national event of this size, how do we expect to attract international conferences of 2,000+?
It’s a classic chicken-and-egg problem: Without big venues, we can’t host big events. And without big events, no one will invest in big venues.
So what’s the solution?
In the short term, we aggressively market what we can offer.
In the long term, we develop infrastructure, train local organisers, and secure air routes.
