To enhance tourism within the kingdom, Buganda kingdom has unveiled an online platform. visitbuganda.com is the web portal which serves as an online market place where all tourism-related services can be accessed. It also showcases the various tourism attractions that Buganda has to offer to the world.
Through a partnership with the private technology company Tripesa, the site was developed benefiting both parties. While Tripesa expands its market reach, the kingdom gains enhanced tourism capabilities.
During a side event at the Pearl of Africa Tourism Expo (POATE) at the Munyonyo Convention Center, Robert Kasozi speaks on a portal launch as Executive Director of the Buganda Heritage and Tourism Board (BHTB) saying that digitizing tourism will bring the kingdom’s hidden treasures closer to the target market without compromising conservation efforts.
“For Buganda to effectively conserve its culture, there must be a balance between digitalization and outreach”. ” The visitbuganda.com portal aims to empower the private sector to reach the market and promote tourism in the Buganda Kingdom.” Kasozi explained
Kasozi stated that as you know, Buganda is a well-researched destination and among the most written-about subjects in Africa, so we have so many people who may want to visit Buganda but don’t have access to tour operators, hotels, but the visitbuganda.com portal is where tourists who want to visit can book a hotel, a ride, and many other things at a click of a button,”
“Since the launch of the online portal, they have engaged numerous stakeholders promoting Buganda’s culture and experiential tourism. The market place will empower communities and build capacity, involving everyone in the digital future while preserving the kingdom’s culture and heritage.” He further mentioned.
Kasozi added saying that they are not keeping people out of business but they are in an era where people want to serve themselves. Why should he first ask someone to give an experience when he can just use his phone and choose and do many other things on his phone.
The co-founder of Tripesa David Gonahasa says that Tripesa aims to democratize access to technology in the tourism business. To create marketplaces, he noted that they have developed a user-friendly tool that enables even those with low technology skills.
Tripesa launched three portals: Visit Buganda, Visit Rwenzori, and the Young Tour Operators Market place during POATE. This technology is now available at a much lower cost which previously cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
