A new trade association looking to develop and maintain standards in the African spa industry will be launched later this year.

As part of its mission statement, Spa Association of Africa (SAA) will look to work alongside national and regional tourism boards as well as operators to set quality standards and encourage education and preventive health measures within the spa, health and wellness industry.

The association is the brainchild of founders Elaine Okeke, principle consultant and founder of SPALOGIQUE, and Dzigbordi Dosoo, founder and CEO of spa consultancy Allure Africa.

The pair have named Alison Ng'ethe, founder of ACI International College of Beauty, Fitness & Holistic Therapy, as the first board member

Services offered by SAA will include training accreditation and education arm aiming to connect facilitators, educators, individuals and organisations interested in developing and delivering training programmes and receiving recognised accreditation.

A launch event has been planned for 24 October 2011 in Accra, Ghana.