Marriott International is hopeful that Africa's growing middle class will mean more travel both to and within the continent, and more guests for its 130 hotels and counting across nine African countries.
The hotel company announced Tuesday at the U.S.-Africa Business Forum here that it would invest $200 million in Africa by opening 36 new hotels and hiring 10,000 new employees by 2020, expanding its reach to 16 countries. Marriott is already the largest hotel operator in Africa since acquiring 116 properties from Protea Hotel Group in April.
