General News and Information
Tiffany Misrahi
Tiffany is the Vice-President of Policy at WTTC where she is responsible for shaping the Travel & Tourism sector’s policy agenda. She joined WTTC in September 2018.
Prior to joining WTTC, she spent 8 years with the World Economic Forum, where she was the Head of the Aviation, Travel and Tourism Industry. At the Forum, Tiffany was responsible for designing the industry agenda as well as the development and management of strategic relationships and partnerships with industry leaders. She was the co-editor of the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness report and led the design and implementation of new initiatives including the Future of Security in Travel and Travel, Tourism & Outbreaks.
Tiffany started her career at the International Trade Centre where she collaborated on the development and implementation of its Tourism-led Poverty Reduction Programme.
Tiffany has a BSc in International Business from Warwick University and a MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science. She recently completed an Executive Master in Leadership as part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Leadership Fellows Programme.
Hon. Memunatu B. Pratt
Prior to her recent appointment as Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs by the New Administration of H. E. Julius Maada Bio, Hon. Memunatu B.Pratt served in various capacities in the field of education, peace and security wherein she excelled and received several honours, awards and recognition for her work which prompted the President to appoint her to revive and reposition the auspicious but fledgling tourism industry in Sierra Leone.
Hon. Pratt pioneered the establishment of the Department of Peace and Conflict Studies at Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, where she served as a Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department for close to 24 years. She was also a Visiting Professor to Hiroshima University and Hiroshima Peace builder’s Centre in Japan for over 7 years. She also served as a Visiting Professor and resource person to several universities in Africa, Asia, Europe and the United States. She has over 15 years’ experience in Peace, Conflict Gender, Security and International Studies. She has a number of publications to her name and she is a recipient of the National Prestigious Insignia Award as Grand Officer of the Order of the Rokel (GOOR) from the Republic of Sierra Leone.
As Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Madam Memunatu Pratt has been considered, by many, as one of best performing Ministers, an award which she won at the 2018 Annual Diaspora Focus Award. She has and continues to spearhead several initiatives which have contributed to solving the perennial challenges of the tourism sector such as the high cost of travelling to Sierra Leone and the difficulty in accessing the destination. She also pioneered the establishment of the Entertainment Foundation to unite, consolidate the gains of the industry and ultimately maximizes its benefits.
Recognizing the negative perception of Sierra Leone as a destination, she managed to secure the support of government to embark on a robust and aggressive marketing campaign which created considerable awareness of the immense potentials, natural beauty, stability and peace that prevails in the country.
Consequently, in an effort to promote domestic tourism and opening up of the vast prime coastal areas of the country, she spearheaded, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture the organisation of the first ever Bonthe District Agro-Tourism Exhibition which attracted hundreds of people from across the country including H. E. the President, Julius Maada Bio.
During her few months in office (2018), the tourism industry experienced the highest growth rate in leisure visitors since the aftermath of the war. Today, her unique leadership style and competency has rendered Sierra Leone to be quoted by the most popular online publisher, ETurbo News as the must-visit emerging tourist destination.
Stakeholders in the tourism and cultural sectors are very optimistic that during her tenure as Minister of Tourism, Sierra Leone’s tourism industry will experience a positive transformation to become West Africa’s most preferred tourist destination.
Hon. Elena Kountoura
Professional Details
1984 to 1996 : International Career in the Fashion Industry.
1996 to 2003 : Publisher magazine with women and social issues.
Political career
She entered politics in 2004 and has been elected Member of Greek Parliament six times in the First District of Athens.
She was appointed Minister of Tourism of Greece in the government of Alexis Tsipras from Jan 2015 to May 2019.
In the European elections in May 2019 she was elected MEP with the SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance party.
Social activities
Elena Kountoura develops strong social and philanthropic activities in Greece and abroad. She is President of the organization «EUROPA DONNA HELLAS«, which deals with the prevention and awareness of breast cancer, and claiming rights to better services for patients with cancer.
She has also been honored for her support in spreading the Greek Paralympic Volunteers, while in December 2007 she was honored by Greek Goverment as a Goodwill Ambassador for Social Volunteering.
Ufi Ibrahim
Ufi Ibrahim is the Founder and Chief Executive of the Energy & Environment Alliance, where she leads initiatives to decarbonise the hospitality sector and promotes adoption of sustainable investment, asset management, development and operations. Under her leadership, the Alliance provides strategic direction and fosters collaboration between governments, businesses, and academia, to accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy. Ufi also currently serves on the Boards of the Lamington Group and the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission.
Previously, Ufi served as the Chief Executive Officer of the British Hospitality Association (BHA), where she played a pivotal role in shaping policies and strengthening the voice of the UK’s hospitality industry. During her tenure, she championed workforce development, sustainability initiatives, and strategic partnerships, contributing to the sector’s growth and resilience.
Ufi has also held senior roles within the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), where she spearheaded initiatives focused on socio-economic development and promoting tourism as a force for good.
Andrew Agius Muscat
Andrew Agius Muscat is an entrepreneur and an experienced management practitioner. Holding a BA honours degree in Business Management and a Masters degree in European Studies, he is a regular speaker at management and leadership training seminars and conferences, and is the founder of the Mediterranean Hotels and Restaurants Academy.
His practical experience was gained in public sector change management initiatives as a consultant within the Office of the Prime Minister for 8 years and later another 10 years (to-date) in the private sector, as CEO and Board Director of various organisations in different sectors, namely food production and distribution, construction, tourism, and as an independent consultant, specialising in strategy and international business development, marketing and media production.
Throughout his career Andrew has also been appointed on various public sector boards and committees including Chairman at the Public Broadcasting Services Ltd, policy consultant to various Ministries, and advisor to the World Bank and the European Parliament.
As a firm believer in developing intellectual capital through education, he has throughout his career introduced programmes of professional development for his various work teams, namely in EU food safety practices and HACCP procedures, benchmarking, ISO quality standards, international business development, facilities management, leadership and marketing. He is currently the CEO at the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association.
Lyn Hughes
In 1992 Lyn Hughes and her late husband, Paul Morrison, were bored on a flight to South America and so schemed out their dream travel magazine on the back of a sickbag. The idea stuck and, returning to the UK a few months later, they launched Wanderlust magazine from their spare bedroom, with Lyn as editor and Paul as publisher.
The magazine gradually grew through word of mouth, and went on to be one of the UK’s leading travel magazines, with numerous awards under its belt. In time it led to this website and to all the other things we do at Wanderlust Travel Media.
After a long fight with cancer, Paul Morrison died in December 2004. In 2007 and 2008, Lyn was Highly Commended as Publisher of the Year. The Times lauded Lyn as one of the “50 Most Influential People in Travel.” In 2012, Lyn was presented by an Outstanding Contribution Award in the British Travel Press Awards. In 2014, Lyn was awarded one of the ‘Top 60 Most Influential Women in Travel in the Last 60 Years’ by the AWTE. She regularly appears on lists of Top UK Travel Journalists / Influencers.
A fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, Lyn is still an award-winning writer in her own right. She is regularly consulted by tourist boards and governments on travel-related issues, especially regarding sustainable tourism. She sits on several committees, including the Latin American Travel Association (LATA). She judges many competitions and awards.
Lyn strongly believes in tourism as a force for good, benefiting local communities, wildlife and the natural world. During the course of Lyn’s own travels she has been attacked in the night by soldier ants in Africa, spent the night in a sailor’s bar in the Azores, and been chased over a barbed-wire-topped 6ft-bank by an angry Irish bull. Her passions include wildlife, wilderness and wine. Her idea of hell would be a week on a crowded beach.
Jay Rosen
Jay Rosen is the CFO for The Red Sea Development Company, a closed joint stock company wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. He oversees finance, investment, and asset management for a new international luxury tourism destination set along the Red Sea as part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. He is responsible for driving long-term strategic value by planning, implementing, managing, and controlling all financial and investment related activities of the Company.
Jay is an accomplished real estate investment and finance executive with broad experience in acquisitions, development, asset management, corporate finance, capital raising, and strategic planning. Over the course of his career he has participated in over $5.5 billion in real estate investments including large, integrated resort developments, single asset and portfolio acquisitions, and corporate mergers and acquisitions. Jay has extensive experience in hospitality and mixed-use assets in addition to residential, retail, gaming, and office investments in North America, the Caribbean, and Middle East.
Jay holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration where he concentrated on real estate finance.
Professor Lee Miles
Lee joined the Bournemouth University Disaster Management Centre on the 1September 2015. Lee is an international relations scholar, educated at the Universities of Lancaster, Birmingham and Hull, receiving his PhD in Politics from the University of Hull (1999), and awarded a Docent in Political Science by Karlstad University in Sweden (2004).
Lee has enjoyed an extensive career working in departments of politics and international relations (Hull and Karlstad universities), politics and communication studies (University of Liverpool), and business school settings (Lincoln and Loughborough universities) in the UK and Sweden. At Bournemouth, he is Programme Leader of the Masters (MSc) in Disaster Management.
Professor Miles is a distinguished scholar, holding Professorships at the universities of Liverpool (2006-2009), Karlstad (2009 – 2017), Loughborough (2011-2015) and now Bournemouth (2015 – ) as well as holding honorary professorial positions at Lancaster and University College London (UCL). Lee has also twice been awarded the prestigious title of Jean Monnet Professor by the European Union (in 2003 (Hull) and in 2004 (Liverpool)) in recognition of his expertise in European foreign policy and crisis management. He has been editor of prestigious peer-reviewed academic journals, including Cooperation and Conflict (2010-2014) and the Journal of Common Market Studies (JCMS) Annual Review (2001-2004), and presently is a member of editorial boards of prominent journals, such as Foreign Policy Analysis.
Lee is an award-winning commentator on disasters in the national/ international media. He featured on Hurricanes Irma and Maria (2017) on premier media outlets, such as (radio): BBC R4 Today Programme, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC World Service News Hour Programme, Good Morning Scotland Programme, Radio Scotland, R4 Austria, BBC Radio London and BBC regional stations, and Talk Radio as well as (TV): BBC News Channel, CNN International, Good Morning Britain (ITV) and STV.
Dr. Adam Wu
Dr. Wu is the Chief Operating Officer of CBN which has a precise slogan “Bring the world to China and Take Chinese to the world”. The slogan summarizes the activities of CBN which now focuses on outward investment and outbound travel from China. As a consortium of organizations CBN specializes in facilitating business and investment for a large number of Chinese and foreign authorities, commercial companies and investors.
Dr. Wu have been instrumental in leading CBN to support many Chinese official delegations, investors and business groups going overseas to explore investment opportunities and/or to find business partners as well as to experience high quality travel.
Adam was privileged to be chosen to study overseas more than 30 years ago with government scholarship when China was just opening to the world with economic reforms thus, Adam has been having direct experience in dealing with Chinese and foreign authorities, businesses and other organizations. Thirty years later China has become a major source market of ODI.
This is reflected by the current focus of CBN on supporting outwards investment from China by developing vertical portals on the China Wide Web called “China Invests Overseas with English demo home page of www.China-Invests.net of which Adam is the CEO.
Adam has been leading the team behind China Invests Overseas in supporting investment promotion authorities and projects owners to reach Chinese investors both state owned enterprises ( SOE) and private businesses across China including Hong Kong. Adam has also been an experienced investor with investments in a number of countries.
Dr. Wu has been invited to speak on various investment conferences and international summit as well as being interviewed by news media both online and offline as well as on the radio that one can see some podcasting.