Africa’s hospitality future should not be built on borrowed models – Hala

No doubt, the African hospitality industry is burgeoning, amid impressive year-on-year performance that has ensued scramble among global hotel chains for market share.

As at today, Africa’s hotel pipeline projects are soaring, while top global hotel chains are sustaining their expansion projects across the continent’s hotel markets.

Bearing the above in mind and looking at the future, concerned hospitality expert thinks that Africa should build and own its hospitality market.

Karl Hala, group general manager, Continental Hotels Group, believes strongly in the above.

In his keynote address at this year’s edition of the Hotel Managers Africa Conference, an annual industry event, Hala, whose hotel, Lagos Continental Hotel, hosted the conference, made a call to action to fellow hoteliers, participants and other stakeholders at the event, insisting that hospitality in Africa is not just a sector, but a solution.

He noted that Africa’s hospitality future should not be built on borrowed models, hence the need to develop African-centric models that will ensure efficiency and growth without losing the heritage and peculiarities of the continent.

In the keynote address titled “Reimagining African Hospitality: Powered by People, Built for the World”, Hala explained that a workable model for Africa’s hospitality industry is the one that is people-oriented.

“It will be powered by our own people — retooled, reimagined, and ready to lead,” he said.

Excited that his hotel is not just offering space for the conference, but shaping the future of the industry, Hala recognised the fact that Africa’s hospitality story is not new.

However, he noted that the chapter, which the participants at the 2025 Hotel Managers Africa Conference were about to write together is going to be different, to enable Africans to own and participate fully in their industry.

While there has been such call to action in the past, the group general manager thinks that it is timely because Africa cannot afford to wait anymore.

Offering more reasons for the wakeup call, Hala noted that, “Africa has the youngest population in the world — yet many of our brightest minds are still queuing for jobs, or worse, queuing at embassies.

“We import training manuals and export talent. That is the paradox we must end”.

According to him, Africa hospitality industry cannot keep standing at a fork in the road.

“Either we become a training ground for other continents,

or we become the epicentre of a bold, African-driven hospitality revolution,” he suggested.

Considering the above, the French-born hospitality expert noted that the gap is real and must be closed by Africans for the continent to be at par with other hospitality industries across the world.

“I have seen it all — outdated curriculums, instructors who have never worked a five-star shift, students memorizing what they should be mastering.

Read also: Why youths are Nigeria’s untapped hospitality superpower – Hala

“But the future does not belong to the textbook. It belongs to the tech-smart, hands-on, hyper-local generation,” he disclosed.

To address the above gap, he insisted that training matters.

With the training, he noted that, “We will bring classrooms into our hotels. “We reward curiosity over conformity and we invest in VR, AI, and gamification — tools that speak to today’s digital-native youth”.

He argued that a cleaning supervisor in Kigali should be able to learn the same skills, on the same digital platform, as a hospitality trainee in Geneva.

“That is equality and innovation”.

As part of the solutions to owning the industry, Hala urged stakeholders to see hospitality beyond service, and more of strategy.

“Let’s stop reducing hospitality to “hello sir” and “yes ma’am,” he urged.

“Hospitality is economics. It is employment. It is soft power. It is diplomacy. When we get it right — it is transformational,” he disclosed.

He also urged Africans to see hospitality as business and treat it as one.

“We have untapped brilliance; from Nigerian cuisine, Ghanaian warmth, Kenyan precision and to Rwandan elegance.

“But we must turn these into exportable standards, not just local charm”.

He observed that the above feats require the buy-in of hotel owners, investors and policymakers.

Starting with the participants at the conference, Hala charged them to start with people if they want good returns on their investments.

Explaining the rationale for starting with people, Hala said that undertrained staff is the most expensive luxury an owner will ever pay for.

“If you want growth, invest in talent. If you want stability, invest in youth and if you want returns, invest in relevance,” he noted.

While a broken AC is costly, he insisted that a broken training pipeline is the real liability.

“Let’s stop copying models that were never built for us.

Let’s create our own operating manuals — proudly African and globally admired,” he urged again.

Pointing out that Africa’s hospitality industry is at a tipping point, he thinks that if the players digitize boldly, train smartly, and promote fearlessly, Africa will not be the world’s hospitality workforce, but its hospitality compass.

At the Lagos conference, Hala also echoed what he said last month in Abuja.

“The next global hotel icon may already be sitting in this room — waiting for her first opportunity.

“Let’s make sure we give it to her and let’s be bold about decentralization.

“Talent is not only in Lagos or Nairobi. It is in Ilorin, in Goma, in Banjul and in Mbale.

We need regional hospitality hubs — not just city showcases”.

While the industry looks to the youth for stability, he urged the youth not to wait to be chosen.

“Train hard, think global, act local and lead with audacity,” he admonished, asking them to build their own entrance if no one is opening the door.

In his conclusion, the group general manager urged all stakeholders to rise, rethink and reimagine the industry together.

“Africa’s hospitality is like our jollof rice — everyone has a version, but ours just hits different.

“Let’s make sure the world tastes it — cooked by local hands, seasoned with global insight, and served with African pride.

“Let’s build an industry where the talent speaks our languages, tells our stories, and uplifts our communities.

The time is not tomorrow. The time is now,” Hala noted, while welcoming the participants to the new African hospitality industry.