On 6 May, Angola officially launched the Angola Convention Bureau. The Southern African nation is striving to position itself as one of the continent’s up-and-coming destinations for MICE.
The bureau was launched at the Talatona Convention Centre in capital city Luanda. Around 400 delegates attended, including representatives from government, aviation, hospitality and the international events industry – including ICCA CEO Senthil Gopinath.
The launch reflects a wider push by Angola to diversify its economy beyond oil through tourism, international investment and business travel.
Senthil Gopinath speaking at the launch of the Angola Convention Bureau
2025 saw a 28% increase in international visits to Angola
Business travel is already becoming a larger part of the country’s visitor economy. In 2025, Angola welcomed 223,140 international visitors, up 28% year-on-year. Business travel arrivals reached 59,750, overtaking leisure arrivals at 52,072.
The country is now trying to turn those business arrivals into longer stays, events activity and wider tourism spending.
Tourism will be an important part of Angola’s economic strategy
José de Lima Massano, minister of state for economic coordination, described the convention bureau as a tool for positioning Angola within the international events market. He pointed to visa exemptions for more than 100 countries, alongside investment in tourism infrastructure and air connectivity.
Márcio de Jesus Lopes Daniel, minister of tourism, said the bureau is intended to attract conferences, corporate events and international investment. “Angola is prepared to host events of international scale,” he said.
Targeting ‘bleisure’ travellers
Alongside conferences and corporate meetings, Angola is also targeting the “bleisure” market. The country is promoting destinations including Luanda, Namibe, Iona National Park and Kalandula Falls as part of that strategy.
“Today’s business travellers are looking for more than conference facilities alone,” said Julia Kleber, CEO of KLEBER GROUP, which supported development of the convention bureau.
“Angola offers something genuinely different: modern infrastructure combined with one of Africa’s most undiscovered and culturally rich destinations.”
Infrastructure developments are also coming
The convention bureau launch comes alongside a pattern of wider investment in transport and hospitality infrastructure. Projects include the new Dr António Agostinho Neto International Airport, which will have capacity for up to 15 million passengers annually.
Angola is expanding international air links through airlines including Lufthansa, Emirates, Qatar Airways and Ethiopian Airlines.
In terms of meeting space, the Luanda Conference Centre is scheduled to open in 2026 with capacity for up to 3,000 delegates. The government is encouraging further investment in hotels and tourism services to drive this trend of modernisation and development forward.
During the launch event, representatives from ICCA, AIPEX, hospitality groups and tourism operators discussed the economic impact of business events across accommodation, transport and investment.
“Meet in Angola”
The ministry of tourism also issued certificates of intent to organisations joining the “Meet in Angola” initiative.
For more information visit www.meet-angola.com.
