Uganda has used the 10th Pearl of Africa Tourism Expo to deliver one of its clearest tourism messages yet: the Pearl of Africa is no longer waiting to be discovered. It is ready to compete for visitors, investment and major-event tourism at continental scale.

Held from 21 to 23 May at Speke Resort Convention Centre in Munyonyo, POATE 2026 brought together more than 350 Ugandan exhibitors, 120 hosted buyers from 40 countries, international media, investors, hotel groups, tour operators and destination partners. On Day Two alone, more than 4,000 people attended as structured business meetings placed commercial conversion at the centre of the expo.

President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, who officially launched the expo, said Uganda’s tourism strength lies not only in its natural beauty, but in its comfort, culture, food and peace. His remarks reflected a wider message running through POATE 2026: Uganda’s tourism brand is broadening beyond wildlife alone into culture, cuisine, hospitality, film, sports tourism, conferencing and creative industries.

“When you are talking of Uganda as a tourism destination, you are talking about comfort, culture, food and peace. It is very comfortable to live here,” he said. The President also revealed plans to improve tourism through friendlier visa arrangements.

“In the new government, we are going to extend visas for tourists and remove the short-term visa restrictions,” he announced.

This year’s edition comes as Uganda prepares to co-host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations alongside Kenya and Tanzania, placing East Africa on one of sport’s biggest broadcast stages. Uganda Tourism Board is using that opportunity to reposition the country not only as a match-day destination, but as a place where football fans can extend their stay through gorilla trekking in Bwindi, the Source of the Nile, Kampala’s culture and nightlife, national parks, food, film and adventure tourism.

Juliana Kagwa, Chief Executive Officer of Uganda Tourism Board, described AFCON 2027 as “our single biggest tourism marketing opportunity in a generation,” adding: “They come for the game, they stay for the Pearl of Africa.”

 As Uganda looks ahead to the tournament, the country’s tourism industry is setting out to make sure the world sees more than football. It wants visitors to see the Pearl of Africa.

In the days before POATE 2026 opened, hosted buyers and international media travelled across Uganda, visiting destinations including Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Lake Mburo, Murchison Falls, Kibale, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Mabira Forest and Lake Bunyonyi.

The expo also saw Turkey, Egypt, China and Canada identified as priority growth corridors, while a dedicated Uganda-Australia tourism dialogue on the sidelines of POATE focused on high-value experiential travel, conservation tourism, wellness, luxury hospitality and low-density adventure tourism.

Regional tourism was also given renewed focus. Tanzanian tour operators and media visited Uganda ahead of POATE as part of efforts to build cross-border East African travel packages, extend visitor stays and position Uganda’s gorilla trekking, chimpanzee tracking, agrotourism, culture and nightlife as complementary to the wider regional circuit.

POATE launched with a Cultural Gala at Ndere Cultural Centre,where more than 200 international hosted buyers and media personalities experienced performances representing Uganda’s cultural diversity. Guests were also introduced to regional cuisine from across the country, including Matooke from the Buganda Kingdom and Kalo from eastern Uganda.

Francis Nyende, Marketing Manager at Uganda Tourism Board, said: “Our culture is our identity and our pride. When the world sees and celebrates what we have, it fills every Ugandan heart with immense joy.”

Uganda’s tourism sector is also entering POATE with stronger economic momentum. Both international arrivals and tourism earnings are growing strongly, underlining the sector’s importance as a source of jobs, foreign exchange and private-sector opportunity.