In our 2016 survey, we report on the activities of 36 hotel chains with between them 86 brands. The total number of rooms in the pipeline is up almost 30 per cent on last year, an extraordinary increase. Compare that with figures produced by STR, the global hotel data and benchmarking provider, who report that the global development pipeline is up 10 per cent on 2015, and 13.6 per cent in the USA, the largest single market. Noted, Africa’s metric is on a lower base of existing hotels, but this is still an impressive growth figure.