The just concluded International Homecoming Root Festival has been rated as the strongest and best in West Africa.

Speaking to Tourisphere at the offices of the Daily Observer recently at the end of this memorable festival, Mr Ikechi Uko, Chief Executive Officer of African Quarterly Travel, has applauded and rated the International Root Festival as the best among the five international events that have global recognition in West Africa.

Ikechi Uko who was accompanied by Mr B Nkeruwem, the president of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), he said that "Africa needs to transit and begin to market its culture. When people appreciate your culture they will appreciate you. And they will give you some value. That is the reason I am very impressed with the success of the International Root Festival because tourism now is about people and heritage."  

According to Ikechi Uko, the kind of facilities and environment available in the Gambia, in compare to some other West African countries, are sufficient for tourists and tourism industries. He added that "The Gambia have efficient and people that are calm. This makes the country distinct from other African countries where there is lot of religion problem and crisis; it is a good example to the whole world not only Africa."
 
The travel market guru has also confirmed that the 9th Edition of International Root Festival is the most robust among others since 1996. He noted that "Gambia has an opportunity as the market leader and the most developed tourism destination in West Africa to tap into the huge human capacity available in the region because there are 250-270 million people in West Africa." He emphasized "if just a million of them can come to the Gambia it will boom the country tourism industry and sell the rest to the world tourism market."