¨IAGTO was set up in 1997 as a representative body for a number of the world's leading golf tour operators.* By the year 2000 IAGTO was well established as the global trade association of the golf tourism industry, and by 2007 it had over 900 member companies in 72 countries. The dynamic growth of this organisation is testament to the unrivalled importance of this €12 billion industry within the global arena of sports travel.  

¨IGTM In its first year, IAGTO established the International Golf Travel Market (IGTM) which has become the industry's annual trade show, now owned and operated by Reed Exhibition Companies, a world leader in travel and golf exhibitions. IGTM attracts over 1000 delegates each December as it moves around the world in its roving tour of emerging and established golf destinations.  

¨Golf Tourism Surveys For such an important niche market, the lack of appliable tourism data was immediately apparent, which led IAGTO in 1998 to assist Sports Marketing Surveys carry out a wide-ranging golf tourism survey. In 2000, IAGTO purchased the rights to the Millennium European Golf Tourism Survey. IAGTO monitors golf tourism surveys from around the world and brings them to the attention of its members. IAGTO's own Global Golf Tourism Survey will enable IAGTO members to be the first to learn about developing trends and preferences of golf travelers around the world.  

¨IGTWA Aware that the majority of golfers actively seek the delights and challenges of golf travel, the world's leisure and golfing publications have long understood both the aspirational and practical attraction of golf travel features. In 2000 IAGTO remedied the situation for golf travel writers by establishing the International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA) - the only global association of its kind for specialist golf travel journalists.

¨IAGTO Awards Again in 2000, IAGTO sought to reward the wonderful achievements of many undiscovered, emerging and established golf destinations by launching the IAGTO Golf Travel Awards. The success of the golf travel industry will forever be dependent on the overall popularity of the game, and the highlights of the first six Awards Ceremonies were the presentations of IAGTO Honorary Awards to Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Seve Ballesteros, Jack Nicklaus, Robert Trent Jones Jr. and Nick Faldo. The Awards are produced in association with Hertz which is committed to delivering the best possible car rental service for golf travelers. 

¨ IAGTO Guides One of IAGTO's most important roles is to raise and maintain standards throughout the golf travel industry. In 2001 IAGTO published the first in a series of IAGTO Guides designed as a benchmark for standards within the golf tourism industry. The IAGTO Guide to improving Speed of Play is a practical guide for golf courses as is the IAGTO Golf Course Check List. In 2000 IAGTO published the first official annual Golf Tourism Directory for the industry, which in 2007 exceeds 225 pages of essential information for companies in the golf tourism business. IAGTO provides a focus for the golf tourism industry, and will continue into the 21st Century to help further develop a niche market that provides endless enjoyment to millions of golfers every year in all corners of the globe. 

¨"The annual golf holiday is the highlight of the golfing year for many of the world's 57 million players”.

The IAGTO Awards held at the same time as the International Golf Travel Market, organised by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) is the number one annual event for the golf tourism industry. The 9th International Golf Travel Market (20–23 November 2006) was the most successful in its history as far as the number of visiting buyers was concerned – in total 300 specialist golf tour operators from around the world attended and had the chance to speak with 392 exhibitors from 42 different countries.

Czech Republic foreign visitors to play golf in 2007 amount 10.000 people, and "The number of golf-playing tourists is going up faster than the amount of traditional tourists” 

Overall golf economy was approximately $62.2 billion in the year 2000. This estimate is comprised of $38.8 billion in core industries, and an additional $23.4 billion in enabled industries as shown in the table below.  

It is interesting to note that in a study of similar scope analyzing the game in 1987,3 the golf industry was projected to grow to between $25.2 billion (no growth scenario) and $57.8 billion (most optimistic growth scenario) by the year 2000. Direct comparisons are complicated due to methodological differences between these two studies, but the estimates presented in this report suggest that growth in the golf industry through the 1990’s exceeded the most optimistic scenario envisioned in the late 1980’s.

The growth in the golf economy since 1987 can be attributed to a number of factors. These include growth in the number and diversity of players, the increasing importance of golf real estate, expansion of the golf tourism industry, and one of the longest economic expansions in USA’s history (1992-2000). The size of the golf economy is significant. Unfortunately, directly comparable figures that encompass both core and enabled industries

do not exist for other sports sectors. To place the golf economy in context, it is roughly the size of the motion picture and sound recording industry ($57.8 billion) and is only slightly less than the total retail electronics and appliance market ($70.2 billion). 

This US Golf Industry economical report is essential to measure size of Golf Industry, Market share of Golf Tourism , because Americans are by far, the largest group visiting Rwanda , accounting for 36,36%  of those visits. 

Understanding the scope of the industry, where the golf industry begins and ends, is the first step in estimating the size of the golf economy. When people think of the economics of golf, they are likely to think of golf courses, golf equipment and apparel manufacturers, and the highly visible golf tournaments. However, they may not know of the vast number of related industries that support or are enhanced by golf. A group of supporting and interrelated industries constitutes an economic cluster–in this case “the golf cluster.”

The cluster map of the golf cluster includes two main segments: core industries and enabled industries. It begins with the golf facilities themselves, and those industries that produce goods and services used to play the game and operate facilities, such as golf equipment manufacturers, course designers, turf maintenance, and club management services. These industries provide the essential inputs that make playing golf at thousands of facilities possible. The game of golf further enables a number of industries, such as golf-related tourism and real estate, through peoples’ interest in the game. Activities in these industries are closely linked to golf, but also have other economic levers. For example, some business travelers may extend their trips to play a round of golf. Therefore, this part of the tourism industry is enhanced by golf-related goods and services, but it often has other business- or leisure-related primary motivators.

1.Augment occupation rate of existing or future capacities 

2.Linkages to National Park by augmenting visits of 40%

3.High-End tourists educated & discerning

4.Augment length of stay to 7 days (South Africa 16, Mauritius 10) 

5.Reliable, colossal, wealthy , identifiable & locatable sources of visitors

6.Dimunished risks of monopoduct offer

7.Synergetic with startegy Vision 2020

8.Environmentally compatible 

9.Creation of Labour both less educated (maintenance) and qualified agronoms (superintendants) 

10.Creatable and upgradable as it is a much less demanding sector

11.Unrestricted not subject to tarfifs and quotas.

12.No dependance on Multinationals and large companies (internet travelers) 

13.Environment and culture oriented  

14.Not reducing Rwanda Carrying capacity

15.Augmentig panel of services by offering golf as incidental activity 

16.Golf growth in demand

17.Improve perception to a wide potential reservoir of tourists

18.Less sensitive to trends

19.Faster recovery after harmfull events

20.Economical marketing by locability of target.

21.Word-to- Mouth Marketing 

When Egypt has been named 2006 Undiscovered Golf Destination of the Year and Thailand Emerging Golf Destination of the Year by the International Association for Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO), the global trade organisation for the golf tourism industry, I was hit by an evidence : Rwanda would make a great golf destination ! That was the beginning of long research to understand elementary concepts and to test relevancy of the idea. Why and how Egypt, not at all in the planet golf 10 years ago, managed to obtain that award? For which reasons are they interested in Golf? Shouldn’t they concentrate on their uniqueness : Ancient Egypt? Was it a simple diversification ? Understanding the structure and functioning of IAGTO was paramount.

The IAGTO's membership comprises more than 900 accredited golf tour operators, golf resorts, hotels, golf courses, operators, airlines and tourist boards in 72 countries worldwide. More than 200 golf tour operators from 38 countries vote for the IAGTO's Golf Destination of the Year awards, basing their votes on quality of golf courses and accommodation, customer service, professional conduct of suppliers, support from local tourism authorities, value for money and accessibility of tee-off times. 

I had the confirmation that I was right concerning Golf in Rwanda when , according to my previsions , the year after, awards went to Czech Republic and to The Garden Route. 

When awards translate in several thousands of flight tickets, hotel reservations, car rentals, golf course fees, National Parks visits, it is worth to consider these options for Rwanda. Research shows that there are around 57 million golfers worldwide - one percent of the world's population - who have access to 31 000 golf courses, This means that a huge market is available – even bigger since Golf is booming in China - to destinations that have the right „mix”. It also means that golfers can afford to be selective. This summary is the fruit of my findings:  It summarizes how “Rwanda Nziza “  can become a New Best Golf Destination.

Raphael Delstanche