The corporate travel industry is having an AI moment. You can feel it in nearly every conference session, supplier pitch, product announcement and buyer conversation. 

Everyone is talking about artificial intelligence, and much of that conversation is useful. AI has the potential to make travel programmes smarter, faster and more responsive. It can help teams identify patterns, reduce friction, improve service and make better decisions with better information.

But there is also quite a bit of theatre right now. 

Too often, AI is presented with more fanfare than substance. It shows up in splashy announcements and with broad claims about transformation, but it’s not always clear how the technology solves real problems inside a travel programme. That is where the scrutiny needs to begin, because the real opportunity is not in who can talk about AI the loudest. It is in who can apply it responsibly, securely and meaningfully in ways that improve outcomes for clients and travellers.

Corporate travel buyers need to learn how to make that distinction. The question is no longer whether a TMC is “using AI.” That answer is almost always yes, at least in some form. The more useful question is whether AI is being applied with a clear purpose, proper oversight and measurable value. 

More specifically, buyers should ask their TMC: 

• What pressing client or traveller problems is AI helping solve?
• How is it making service teams, account managers or advisors more effective?
• What safeguards are in place to protect traveller data and company information?
• How are AI-enabled suppliers being vetted before they are introduced into the programme?

And perhaps most importantly, can the TMC demonstrate those tools working in a live production environment, not just in a polished demo? 

These questions matter because AI should not be evaluated by how impressive it sounds in a sales conversation. It should be evaluated by whether it improves decision-making, reduces friction, strengthens service, protects data and delivers outcomes buyers can actually see.

A tool that performs beautifully in a demo still must prove it can operate at scale, integrate into existing workflows, protect sensitive information and support the people responsible for delivering service when travellers need help most – because managed travel involves real travellers, real itineraries, real disruptions, real privacy obligations and real consequences when things go wrong.

AI must be pressure tested before it is brought into a client environment. TMCs manage personally identifiable information at scale, and that responsibility requires discipline. 

Supplier review processes should be demanding – and sometimes that will create friction with technology partners. So be it. That friction exists for a reason: to protect corporate clients and make sure any partner technology brought into the ecosystem has been put through the paces of trust, security and practical value.

Right-sizing AI

The industry also needs to be honest about what AI should and should not do. AI should make people more effective. It should help advisors, account teams and travel managers make better decisions, move faster and anticipate issues earlier. It should reduce unnecessary manual work and surface insights that might otherwise stay buried. Used well, AI can help move travel management from reactive service to proactive support. 

But AI cannot become decoration around an otherwise unchanged model. Adding AI language to a platform does not automatically create value. Buyers should be wary of any solution that sounds impressive but cannot clearly explain what problem it solves, whose work it improves, or how success will be measured. 

The future of travel management will not be defined by technology alone. It will be defined by how well technology is integrated with human judgment, operational expertise and a clear understanding of the traveller experience. People still matter deeply in this business.

Technology can reduce anxiety, speed up response and improve visibility, but it’s the people who create confidence and trust when a traveller is stuck, a programme is under pressure, or a disruption requires judgment. 

AI is already reshaping business travel. But buyers should demand more than theatre. They should ask harder questions, expect clearer answers and look for partners who can prove their AI strategy is grounded in trust, not trend-chasing.

Source: businesstravelnewseurope.com

Every leader has a signature. Some inspire through speeches. Others through bold declarations.

Dr. Joseph Kithitu has built his reputation asking questions.

“Take these numbers. Relate them to your business.” – It has become one of the defining lines of his leadership.

When addressing travel agents at industry forums, the Chairman of the Kenya Association of Travel Agents (KATA) has developed a habit of turning statistics into strategy sessions. BSP sales. Profit. Loss. Passenger trends. Industry performance.

Many leaders stop there. The numbers speak for themselves.

Dr. Kithitu is rarely interested in applause. Instead, he challenges the room. “Take these numbers. Relate them to your business. Are you keeping pace or are you being left behind?”

Suddenly, the presentation is no longer about Kenya’s travel industry. It becomes about every business owner in the room.

It is a deceptively simple leadership style. One that refuses to allow success to become complacency. Statistics are never the destination. They are the starting point for asking harder questions, challenging assumptions, and encouraging businesses to evolve.

Many view figures as a representation of growth. Dr. Kithitu sees something else.
A responsibility. To him, Industry growth means very little if individual businesses are not growing alongside it.

This week, his philosophy received regional recognition.

Meeting during the 2026 AESATA Travel Agents’ Conference in Livingstone, Zambia, the Board of the Association of Eastern and Southern Africa Travel Agents (AESATA) elected Dr. Joseph Kithitu as its new President, succeeding Tanzania’s Moustafa Khataw.

For many, the announcement was a moment of celebration. For those who have watched KATA’s transformation over the past few years, it felt more like the next logical chapter.

Strong industries are built on strong institutions.

Few people understand that better than Dr. Kithitu.

Long before assuming regional leadership, he had already begun reshaping KATA from a traditional membership organisation into an institution whose influence increasingly extends beyond its membership.

The results are difficult to ignore.

Over the past four years, KATA’s membership has grown by more than 70 per cent, transforming it into one of the country’s most representative travel industry associations. Growth on that scale reflects more than recruitment. It reflects confidence. Confidence that the Association is advocating effectively, creating opportunities for members and ensuring that travel agents have a seat at the tables where critical decisions are made.

And that is perhaps where Dr. Kithitu’s greatest impact has been felt.

Influence.

Under his stewardship, KATA has steadily positioned itself where the industry’s most important conversations happen.

The Association secured representation on the National Air Transport Facilitation Committee (NATFC), giving travel agents a voice in discussions shaping Kenya’s aviation sector. Through CEO Nicanor Sabula’s appointment to the Tourism Regulatory Authority (TRA) Board, KATA strengthened its contribution to tourism policy and regulation.

Regionally, the Association has remained actively engaged in the IATA Agency Programme Joint Council (APJC), working alongside counterpart associations in Uganda and Tanzania to ensure East African travel agents remain represented as airline distribution undergoes its biggest transformation in decades.

Internationally, Dr. Kithitu serves on the Board of the United Federation of Travel Agents’ Associations (UFTAA), one of the world’s most influential bodies representing travel agents. His involvement at the global level has given him a front-row seat to the issues reshaping international travel – from airline distribution and technology adoption to advocacy and professional standards- an experience that now naturally feeds into his regional leadership at AESATA.

None of those milestones happened overnight.

Together, they tell the story of a chairman who has consistently believed that influence is earned by being present where decisions are made.

That influence has already translated into tangible results for the industry. KATA successfully petitioned the Government to withdraw a proposal to introduce a 16 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) on air ticketing services. Had it been implemented, the tax would have significantly increased the cost of ticketing services, placing additional financial pressure on travellers and travel agencies alike. The reversal was widely viewed as one of KATA’s most significant advocacy victories, demonstrating the Association’s ability not only to participate in policy discussions but to influence their outcome.

But advocacy alone has never been enough.

Dr. Kithitu has repeatedly argued that the future competitiveness of travel businesses will depend on their willingness to evolve. As artificial intelligence, automation and New Distribution Capability (NDC) continue to reshape the global travel landscape, KATA has consistently encouraged members not to fear technology but to embrace it.

Under his leadership, Industry meetings have quietly become important strategy forums. They begin with numbers. They end with conversations. Travel agency owners openly debate market realities. They challenge one another. They discuss technology, profitability, changing traveller behaviour and the future of the profession. These conversations continue inside boardrooms across the country. Perhaps that explains why KATA today is increasingly viewed not merely as an association, but as an institution helping shape the future of Kenya’s travel industry.

Dr. Kithitu’s own journey reflects that same blend of financial discipline and industry leadership. A holder of a PhD in Finance, Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Secretary, he spent more than two decades in senior finance before rising to become Managing Director of Hemingways Travel. Those who have worked with him often note that while his background is finance, his leadership has always been about people.

Numbers matter. Evidence matters. But only if they change behaviour.

That mindset now moves onto a much larger stage.

AESATA brings together 13 national travel agent associations from Botswana, Comoros, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Collectively, they represent thousands of travel professionals working to address many of the same challenges, including fragmented air connectivity, evolving airline distribution models, rapid technological disruption, changing consumer expectations and the need for stronger regional collaboration.

Africa’s travel industry stands at an important crossroads.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is creating new opportunities for commerce. Momentum behind the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) continues to grow. Governments are increasingly recognising tourism as a driver of economic development.

Yet barriers remain.

High airfares. Restrictive visa regimes. Limited connectivity. Uneven technology adoption.

No single country can solve those challenges alone. That is precisely why AESATA matters.

Its role is to bring countries together, build consensus, strengthen advocacy and ensure that travel agents remain central to shaping Africa’s tourism future.

For Kenya, Dr. Kithitu’s election represents far more than national pride. It places the country’s travel industry at the centre of regional conversations on aviation, tourism policy, technology adoption and professional standards. It strengthens Kenya’s voice in discussions that will determine how Eastern and Southern Africa travels, trades and grows over the coming years.

For AESATA, it brings a leader whose track record has been defined not by grand pronouncements, but by deliberate institution-building. By asking difficult questions. By challenging businesses to think differently. By measuring success not simply through industry performance, but through the progress of individual businesses.

Perhaps that is why one sentence continues to define his leadership.

“Take these numbers. Relate them to your business.”

It is a lesson that extends well beyond balance sheets.  It is about refusing to confuse industry growth with personal progress. It is about turning opportunity into action.

And as Dr. Joseph Kithitu assumes the presidency of AESATA, it is a philosophy that now has the opportunity to shape not only Kenya’s travel industry, but the future of travel across Eastern and Southern Africa.

For decades, Africa has spoken about the promise of a single travel and tourism market. Yet travellers still face expensive airfares, fragmented airline networks, restrictive visa regimes and disconnected booking systems that often make it easier and cheaper to travel outside the continent than within it.

Bridging those gaps has become the mission of the Association of Eastern and Southern Africa Travel Agents (AESATA), a regional body that brings together 13 national travel agent associations from Botswana, Comoros, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Together, the member associations work to tackle shared challenges ranging from changing aviation regulations and rapid technological disruption to the need for harmonised service standards and stronger intra-African tourism networks.

It is against this backdrop that more than 200 delegates from 22 African countries converged in Livingstone, Zambia, for the 4th Annual AESATA Travel Agents’ Conference, the association’s flagship regional gathering. Under the theme “Africa in Motion,” the conference brought together an unusually broad cross-section of the travel ecosystem, including travel agencies, airlines, tourism boards, hospitality brands, policymakers, financial institutions and travel technology providers to examine one fundamental question: What will it take to move Africa together?

Over three days of keynote addresses, executive roundtables and industry discussions, one message emerged with remarkable consistency.

No single airline. No single government. No single travel agency.

Only collaboration.

A Meeting of the Entire Travel Ecosystem

Unlike many industry conferences where discussions remain within one sector, AESATA deliberately placed every player in the travel value chain in the same room.

Government officials shared the stage with airline executives. Tourism boards exchanged ideas with travel agents. Technology companies demonstrated digital solutions alongside payment providers, while hospitality brands showcased how destinations themselves can become stronger partners in regional tourism.

The diversity of delegates reflected a growing understanding that Africa’s travel challenges cannot be solved in isolation.

Regional connectivity depends as much on government policy as it does airline strategy. Travel agents remain the bridge between suppliers and travellers. Technology is becoming the infrastructure that ties the ecosystem together.

It was this interconnected approach that gave this year’s conference its significance.

Connectivity Dominated Every Conversation

If there was one word that echoed through nearly every keynote, panel discussion and networking session, it was connectivity.

Not simply the availability of flights, but the broader idea of making Africa easier to move around.

Industry leaders examined how fragmented air networks continue to suppress demand, increase travel costs and limit tourism growth despite the continent’s enormous potential.

Panel discussions explored how stronger airline partnerships, smarter distribution systems and improved regional cooperation could stimulate business travel, leisure tourism and intra-African trade simultaneously.

One of the conference’s flagship discussions, Air Travel in Africa: Unlocking Growth, Connectivity and Commerce, brought together leaders from IATA, the Airline Association of Southern Africa (AASA), Visa and travel technology provider Triply to examine aviation’s role as an economic catalyst rather than simply a transport service.

The message was clear.

Every additional route, every simplified payment process and every digital innovation has the potential to unlock entirely new travel markets across Africa.

Beyond Flights: Removing Africa’s Invisible Borders

Air connectivity was only part of the discussion.

Equally important was the recognition that many of Africa’s barriers remain administrative rather than physical.

The conference dedicated one of its headline sessions to what many delegates described as one of the continent’s biggest untapped opportunities: removing unnecessary friction from travel.

The aptly named Unblock Africa: Breaking Visa Walls, Aviation Taxes & Unlocking Africa’s Trillion-Dollar Travel Economy examined how visa restrictions, taxation and inconsistent policy frameworks continue to discourage movement between African countries.

For many delegates, improving mobility is no longer simply a tourism issue.

It is increasingly viewed as an economic imperative capable of stimulating investment, trade and regional integration.

Technology Is Becoming the Industry’s New Infrastructure

While aviation and policy dominated many conversations, technology quietly emerged as one of the conference’s strongest underlying themes.

Across presentations and exhibitions, travel technology providers demonstrated how automation, digital booking systems, payment solutions and modern distribution platforms are reshaping how African travel businesses operate.

For agencies facing rapidly changing customer expectations, digital transformation is no longer a competitive advantage.

It is becoming the cost of remaining relevant.

Rather than replacing travel agents, speakers repeatedly argued that technology should empower them—reducing manual processes, expanding product access and allowing agencies to focus on advisory services and customer relationships.

It was a reminder that the future of African travel will depend as much on digital connectivity as physical connectivity.

Redefining the Role of the Travel Agent

Perhaps one of the most thought-provoking conversations centred on the evolution of the travel agency itself.

Industry leaders challenged agencies to rethink their role in an era where travellers increasingly book online.

The future, delegates heard, lies not in competing with booking engines, but in delivering expertise, personalised service, destination knowledge and end-to-end travel solutions that technology alone cannot replicate.

Several sessions reinforced that agencies remain critical partners within the travel ecosystem—connecting airlines, hotels, destinations and travellers while supporting the growth of regional tourism.

Building Relationships Beyond the Boardroom

The conference was intentionally designed to extend beyond formal presentations.

Networking lunches, exhibitions, business meetings, a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River and the Tree of Life Gala Dinner created opportunities for conversations that often prove just as valuable as those held on stage.

For many delegates, these informal engagements are where partnerships begin—new routes are discussed, supplier relationships strengthened and cross-border collaborations initiated.

That, ultimately, is the value of gatherings like AESATA Travel Agents’ Conference.

Not simply the exchange of ideas, but the creation of relationships capable of turning those ideas into commercial opportunities.

More Than a Conference

By the time delegates gathered for the closing ceremony and the adoption of the Livingstone Declaration, one thing had become increasingly evident.

Africa’s travel industry is no longer asking whether integration is possible.

It is asking how quickly it can happen.

For three days, Livingstone became a meeting point for the continent’s travel decision-makers.

But perhaps the most important outcome was not a keynote speech, a panel discussion or even a declaration.

It was the growing consensus that Africa’s travel future will not be built by individual markets acting alone.

It will be built by governments, airlines, travel agents, tourism boards and technology providers moving in the same direction.

Because if this year’s AESATA Conference demonstrated anything, it is that Africa in Motion is no longer just a conference theme.

It is becoming the strategy shaping the continent’s next era of travel.