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After making a fortune in supermarkets and commercial real estate, Ponsiano Ngabirano, the Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Capital Shoppers Supermarkets, has ventured into the hospitality industry.
The retail UGX billionaire is building a 400-room 5-star hotel in Nsambya, Kampala, next to Méstil Hotel & Residences Kampala.
The iconic structure that has already earned space on the Kampala skyline and is a walking distance from the Arena Mall is to be completed by 2023/24, just around the same time the traffic-jam-killing Kampala Flyover project will be complete.
Born in 1955 in Rukungiri, in Rukungiri District, Western Uganda, he in 1997, debuted his first supermarket on Dastur Street in Kampala. He has since opened three other outlets, at Nakawa, Ntinda and Garden City Mall. Alongside the retail outlets, the businessman also runs a real estate business, renting out extra space not used by the supermarkets on his buildings.
CEO East Africa Magazine, understands, the businessman has entered into a partnership with Marriot International to run the Hotel under one of their Marriot brands. The hotel chain runs a portfolio of more than 8,100 properties under 30 brands across 139 countries and territories. Some of its other famous brands, include JW Marriot, The Ritz-Carlton, Protea by Marriot, Sheraton, Le Meridien, Courtyard by Marriot, and Four Points By Sheraton. Marriott International’s current portfolio in Africa encompasses nearly 130 properties and more than 23,000 rooms across 20 countries.
At the recently ended Africa Hospitality Investment Forum in Taghazout Bay, Morocco, Karim Cheltout, Regional Vice President – Development, Africa, Marriott International, Inc., announced plans to expand its presence in Africa, including Uganda by over 30 hotels, and more than 5,000 rooms by the end of 2024.
Marriot already runs four hotels in Kampala- Protea Hotel Kampala Skyz, Protea Hotel Kampala, Protea Hotel, Entebbe and Sheraton Kampala Hotel. A Four Points by Sheraton hotel is under completion and will debut in Kampala early next year.
The new Marriot Hotel in Nsambya will be a welcome addition to internationally-branded-hotels-starved Uganda.
According to Uganda Tourism Board, as of June 2019, only 4 International hotel chains were operating in Uganda i.e. Marriott International Group; Louvre Hotels Group (Golden Tulip Canaan brand); and Hilton Garden Inn and Latitude 0º.
Best Western has since opened its Best Western Premier Hotel in Entebbe. Onomo Hotels have also opened their first hotel in Kampala, while another Hilton Hotel is under development in the leafy upmarket Nakasero area.
According to the 2018 Knight Frank report, the top 10 African countries with branded chains of hotels are South Africa with 430 chains, Egypt with 300, Morocco with 153, Tunisia with 103, Kenya with 68, Mauritius with 60, Nigeria with 58, Tanzania 46, Zimbabwe 31 and Algeria 28.