Homestays should be looked at as an opportunity

Editor, RE: “Hotels on alert as Airbnb threat looms” (The New Times, February 15). I read with great interest your story regarding the services being offered by Airbnb, an international marketplace for rental accommodation. What is most interesting is the fact that this platform has already caught the attention of Rwandan homeowners and as many as 170 local properties have already been listed on Airbnb. Homestay, as this type of accommodation is referred to, should not be viewed as a threat, but rather as an expansion of Rwanda’s tourism offerings. As mentioned in your article, the average fare for a standard hotel across the country currently stands at $70. You have further mentioned that properties advertising on Airbnb go for as low as $20. This, in my frank opinion, is good news for individuals who have put their spare rooms up for rent. It is also good news for Rwanda because Airbnb will open up Remarkable Rwanda to a much larger international as well as a domestic market. With good governance that is so strongly entrenched in this model nation, the concerned authorities can very well put in place a procedure which makes it mandatory for any individual or any company wanting to get on to Airbnb to first register with the Government. Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board has very effectively introduced and also marketed homestays. In Malaysia, even homestays are regulated by Government—whether they register with Airbnb or with any other similar platform. As Belize Kariza, Chief Tourism Officer at RDB, has very rightly remarked, they “are looking into ways to regulate” such players “to ensure adherence to standards and that security is not compromised”. In according with Minster of Youth and ICT Jean-Philbert Nsengimana, the entry of Airbnb is another development that arises as a result of investments in internet and ICT, and with the right systems in place, standards and security would not be compromised. The added advantage is that domestic tourism could well take a great leap forward with accommodation in the City of Kigali, now becoming far more affordable and accessible to locals from the provinces and vice-versa. All along, these locals would not have been able to travel to other provinces or for that matter to Kigali because of relatively high accommodation price structures. Marketing today is the buzz word. For sure, existing hotels which might feel threatened by Airbnb would need to adopt smarter marketing strategies and innovative ideas to stay in business and ahead of competition. On the other hand, Airbnb will surely open up opportunities for many locals and also investors who might want to target this segment. This will definitely result in an increased market share for the country of budget tourists and will simultaneously open up new vistas for domestic tourism. Clarence Fernandes

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Homestays should be looked at as an opportunity