Slashed NGO funding a threat to business events

Industry leaders have cautioned that current seismic shifts in global politics – including withdrawal of US funding for NGOs – present a new set of challenges for Africa’s MICE sector.

“These major decisions may sound political but they have an impact on our work,” said Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, on the sidelines of Meetings Africa in Sandton on Wednesday (February 26), referring to the loss of more than US$450 million in United States Agency for International Development aid for the country.

“Most of that money was spent on healthcare and many of those healthcare companies had conferences. The agriculture sector is also affected. From big companies to universities, that…