Khalid Ameri who is known for his daily videos about life in which he features his Arab wife Salama Mohamed and their two kids, Khalifa and Abdullah is set to work with the Uganda Tourism Board as a tourism influencer given his huge following across the world. When the renowned You-tuber announced to have landed in Uganda, Ugandans could not hide their excitement as they flocked his social media page to pour their gratitude following the trip.
Just a few days after hosting Senegalese-American pop-star, Akon, Uganda also hosted a renowned Emirati vlogger Khalid Al Ameri. Earlier, Khalid had promised to fly to Uganda in January 2021 to attend the wedding of his house-help. Identified as Sarah, the house-help was slated to officially marry the love of her life, her employer vowing to support her.
Sarah had worked in Khalid’s house for more than six years. Khalid celebrated her as a worthy servant. They had promised to make lots of surprises to Sarah as she was walked down the aisle.
“Sarah has been part of our family for six years and she is now returning to her home country to get married and start a family of her own’’, said Khalid. ‘’So we decided to give her a couple of surprises,” he continued.
The warm-hearted helper is said to have started working with the family which resides in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when Khalid’s last born was only two years old, and the two had built a special bond.
Meanwhile, as the Uganda Tourism Board gears up to revamp the tourism sector (following the misery time of covid-19) they have hinted at using the Emirati vlogger Khalid Al Ameri and his wife Salama as tourism influencers.
After a year of turmoil and low tourism numbers caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) is gearing up to revamp and boost the sector, starting with Senegalese-American pop-star and then Khalid. Khalid and Salama addressed the media when they landed in Uganda for the wedding.
One of the approaches the Uganda Tourism Board intends to use is social media influencers, with Emirati You-tuber and vlogger Khalid Al Ameri and his wife Salama Mohamed topping the list. According to the board’s marketing manager Claire Mugabi, Uganda can bank on the couple’s following not just in the Middle East but globally as well to put the country back on the international radar.
“We want to work with Khalid to tap into his following because he has over 6 million followers. As UTB, we want to work with him to further consolidate our presence in the UAE market, “ she said. She also revealed that the board came to know about Khalid through a story that went viral in December 11th, 2020, as he and his family saw off Sarah Nassanga, a Ugandan lady who had been working with them for over 6 years.
So when Khalid and Salama mentioned they would visit Uganda to attend Sarah’s wedding, the board leveraged on that to showcase the beauty that exists from where their employee comes from. ‘’One of the key assets we have as a country is the hospitality, therefore, we thank Sarah Nassanga that through her, we have been able to connect with Khalid,’’ she continued.
Khalid, who described Sarah as a sister to his family, noted that he understands the importance of tourism to an economy and that, that’s why the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has created a conducive environment for visitors and tourists from all over the world.
“I came to Uganda to share that story with the world. I’m more curious to see how my family interacts with nature, to see things they love and see the beauty of mother Earth. We look forward to sharing this story with the rest of the world,” said Khalid. Khalid and Salama, who offered to take care of all expenses during Sarah’s wedding, are blessed with two children Khalifa and Abdullah.
As the tourism fraternity, we are very delighted to work with such notable icons in promoting our tourism sector abroad and we hope the cooperation will surely be fruitful to the sector.
