Sheraton Kampala Hotel, a 4 star Hotel has made changes in its management by making new executive appointments.

Paul Ocama has been appointed as the Banquet Sales Executive at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel. He is a graduate in Tourism Management and Marketing from the University of Applied Sciences and Technologies in Salzburg, Austria and has eight years working experience in Uganda’s tourism industry. He has worked for Travelust African Safaris, Scio Specereyen (Salzburg), Reachout Safaris and Travel Agency as an administrative officer, and Nile Hotel International.

Priyantha IIleperuma has also been appointed as Executive Chef. Priyantha worked with several international hotels like the Sheraton Doha, Sheraton Alger, Hilton Hotels and the 7-star Emirates Palace, the second largest worldwide.

The two new staff members have brought creativity and innovative skills to Sheraton Kampala Hotel and are set to work with the already tremendous team at the Sheraton Hotel in the continuous provision of international services.

By Kisibo Jackie
Uganda Hotel News

Releasing their report at Hotel Africana in Kampala yesterday, the leader of the African Union team, Victor Tonchi, said they were impressed with the participation rates in certain polling stations that averaged more than 60% of registered voters

The team said that it visited and observed the voting process in over 100 polling stations in five districts outside Kampala, where they paid attention to particular aspects of the electoral process, like delivery and handling of electoral materials, counting of votes, voter participation and security. Tonchi said the February 23rd polls were conducted in a calm and peaceful manner, despite some irregularities.

The AU team wishes to congratulate the EC for the well organised and executed elections; political parties for mature contestation and Ugandans for responsible participation.

By Tanah Hadijah
Uganda Hotel News

Inns of Uganda which owns two up market lodges-Jacana Safari lodge in queen Elizabeth and Nile Safari lodge in Murchsion Falls national parks, and are set to open a new one, Mabira forest Lodge in Mabira Forest. The company has changed names and logo and now it is called Geolodges Uganda. The Managing director Zahid Alam said the new name and logo represents the company’s interests in conservation, community responsibility tourism.

Jacana safari lodge has seven luxury chalets constructed from natural local materials, in harmony with its forest setting. Each spacious chalet is individually decorated and has an enclosed verandah with large windows, providing panoramic views over the Crater Lake. You can savour a chilled sundowner or dine al fresco in privacy on your private balcony, served by your personal waiter.

BY Tanah Hadijah
Uganda Hotel news

During his rather quiet three hour state visit to Uganda ,Prince Alwaleed held talks with the President of Uganda His Excellency Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in which he agreed to construct three chain five star hotels, venture into eco-tourism, build tourist sites, national parks and forests. Among the prince’s other growing investment interests in the East Africa region are the Norfolk Hotels in Kenya and the five star Royal Palm Hotel in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. His eyes are also set on snapping up additional property in Zanzibar, the beaches and game parks in the mainland.

The prince, who is a nephew to the Saudi King further has shares in Motorola, AOL Time/Warner, Amazon.com, the Four Seasons hotel chains, eBay.com, Ford Motor Company, Hewlett and Packard, Pepsi, News Corporation, Kodak, Gillette among other leading global corporations.
Kampala is experiencing a hotel construction boom where over five multi billion shilling projects are due for launch before the November 2007 Commonwealth Summit in Kampala. He is known to be one of the five richest men in the world.

The new hotel will be located a stones throw away from the multi billion shilling Golf Course Hotel along Yusuf Lule Road and Aga Khan’s Serena Hotel (formerly Nile Hotel) on Hannington Road. It will become Uganda’s second five star hotel after Serena. Yet to be named, his hotel will have several storeys and all the extras that come with all his hotels across the world and also employ hundreds of locals. Other hotels in the neighbourhood include Africana, Speke and Sheraton.

Prince Alwaleed’s fortune, anchored by a $10 billion stake in Citigroup, was lifted in part by a 116% rise in the Saudi stock market in 2004, the same year he unloaded his half of New York’s Plaza Hotel and then ploughed the profits into acquiring stakes in London’s Savoy Hotel and Monaco’s Monte Carlo Grand at several million dollars.

Plans are under way to relocate Shimoni Demonstration School and Primary Teachers College that have occupied the land for the last many decades to Lugogo, a city suburb about three kilometres away, by April 2006.

By Tanah Hadijah
Uganda Hotel News

Hotel rates have been said to be highest in Africa. According to Mr. Julius Bagonza, the Chairman of Uganda Hotel and Catering Association (UHCA), “The high costs involved in running hotels force hoteliers to hike their rates,” he told Business & Finance in an interview recently.

Utilities like electricity are expensive and yet they are unstable. Hotels have to maintain full-time generators due to the load shedding. He also said that because Uganda is a land locked country, hotels spend a lot on clearing their utensils at Mombasa airport and transporting them by road from Mombasa to Uganda.

Bagonza, from Sheraton Kampala Hotel, says the hotel for example spends Shs48 million on electricity and Shs19 million on water per month.
The hotels must also pay licenses, VAT, TV licence fees for each TV set, corporate tax, PAYE among other taxes. The high hotel costs then have to be passed onto the customers because Hotels have to make profits.

“Our pricing are so high and it is not good for our sector and investors. Uganda needs more hotels to be able to host a good number of visitors, but if the taxes continue to increase, people will shun this business and the country will lose out on tourism due to inadequate accommodation,” he said.

Bagonza said Uganda has become a very expensive destination for tourists and is likely to lose its potential tourists to Kenya and Tanzania, which are a bit cheaper. He argues that if government is serious about developing tourism in Uganda, hoteliers and other investors should be given good incentives.

By Kisibo Jackie
Uganda hotel News