Arusha is the gateway to world-famous national parks and UNESCO world heritage sites and was recently branded as the “Green Tourism Capital of East Africa.” Tourism is the city’s largest contributor to GDP and employs thousands of people. Shapers propose to take a fresh approach to tourism to tackle challenges like unemployment, over taxation and inefficient infrastructure.

The Arusha Hub is creating a digital tourism proposal to implement policies and initiatives that support the 6A’s of tourism: attractions, accessibility, amenities, available packages, activities and ancillary services. Shapers aim to train and equip city authorities to navigate the fast-paced technology industry and involve Arusha’s local innovation ecosystem to develop tourism apps which incorporate the 6A’s by design.

Shapers activities will aim to connect infrastructure electronically through an IoT network, similar to the one already implemented in Kigali. With technology embedded in buildings and within entities, destinations will utilize the synergy between sensing technology and social components to support the tourist experience. Mobile money can also be integrated into this system for ease of payment and user experience. Shapers will embrace co-creation marketing with tourists by providing easy access to high-quality internet either through public wifi hotspots or telecom tourist internet packages.