By Kingsley Ighobor and Aissata Haidara
Jet-lagged, 500 delegates from around the world arrived in Victoria
Falls, Zimbabwe, in May to deliberate on the path to Africa's tourism
future.
To unwind, Zimbabwe's Tourism Authority, host of the congress of the
Africa Travel Association (ATA), had organized a fun-filled welcome.
The delegates toured Victoria Falls - one of the world's seven natural
wonders - where they participated in bungee jumping, gorge swinging
and zip-lining over the Zambezi River. They then went on safari,
encountering lions and elephants. Later they savoured local cuisine
and danced enthusiastically to traditional music.
The host's intention was clear: see, feel and believe. Zimbabwe's
showcasing spoke louder than routine speeches. It spurred tourism
ministers from Ghana, Namibia, Uganda and other African countries to
become bullish about the continent's potential. Said US Ambassador
Charles A. Ray, "Zimbabwe, even with its political uncertainty, is a
potentially huge market."
Economic lifelines
Tourism watchers are upbeat. In 2004, proponents of the New
Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) approved an action plan
to make Africa the "21st century destination." Taleb Rifai, secretary-
general of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), recently stated
that "Africa has been one of the fastest-growing tourism regions of
the last decade.... With the right investment, tourist arrivals will
continue to grow, investors will see excellent returns, jobs will be
created and the entire economy will benefit." The sector already
employs about 7.7 million people in Africa. Mr. Rifai cited data
showing steady increases in Africa's tourist arrivals, from 37 million
in 2003 to 58 million in 2009.
Tourism revenues are the lifeline of many economies. About 50 per cent
of Seychelles' gross domestic product (GDP) comes from tourism. The
rates are 30 per cent in Cape Verde, 25 per cent in Mauritius and 16
per cent in Gambia. The World Bank reports that tourism accounts for
8.9 per cent of East Africa's GDP, 7.2 per cent of North Africa's, 5.6
of West Africa's and 3.9 per cent of Southern Africa's. In Central
Africa, tourism contributes just 1 per cent.
Small space on global stage
Despite the chest-thumping, Africa's share of global tourist arrivals
is relatively small. There were 980 million international tourist
arrivals in 2011, of which only 50 million traveled to Africa.
However, Africa is still receiving more tourists than the Caribbean,
Central America and South America combined, according to UNWTO.
North Africa suffered a 12 per cent loss in 2011 from the previous
year due to that region's political unrest, denting the continent's
share of international arrivals. But that loss was partially offset by
a 7 per cent uptick in sub-Saharan Africa, which gained 2 million
arrivals. Overall, the 2011 data shows that Africa performed better
than the Middle East, which lost 5 million arrivals. Generally, the
continent's top earners are Egypt, South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia and
Mauritius, according to UNWTO.
Tourists in Africa come mostly from Europe and the US. France is the
number one source, followed by the UK and the US. French tourists like
to go to Morocco, Tunisia, Mauritius, Senegal and Madagascar. Tourists
from the UK mostly go to Egypt, South Africa, Mauritius and Gambia,
while those from the US prefer South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, Rwanda,
Ethiopia and Zimbabwe.
Infrastructure problems
The East African Community (EAC), a regional bloc, hopes to attract
tourists from other parts of the world - not just the West - to go to
different parts of East Africa - not just Kenya and Tanzania. The EAC
strategy, developed in 2006, includes using DVDs, brochures and other
materials to promote the region as a bloc. At international tourism
conferences, East Africa now speaks with one voice.
What draws tourists to a country, region or continent? "I wanted to
see something different from Europe and I decided to visit Kenya and
Tanzania. It is a different feel I got, and I like that," Sven Brun,
from Norway, tells Africa Renewal. The McKinsey Global Institute, a
think tank, maintains that tourists are attracted to countries with
good infrastructure, safety and security, and sanitation. Janet Kiwia,
the managing director of World Jet Travel and Tours in Tanzania, adds
that bad roads, poorly maintained airports, power outages and other
shortcomings keep tourists away.
There are concerns over the safety of Africa's aircraft and airspace.
In just two days in June, two planes crashed in Nigeria and Ghana,
killing more than 160 people. In 2009 the World Bank found that 60 per
cent of runways in North Africa were in excellent condition, but only
17 per cent in sub-Saharan Africa were. In addition, many sub-Saharan
airports are small and have trouble dealing with increasing arrivals.
Most depend on a single airline and some have no connections to major
carriers.
Innovative approaches
A report by New York University, the World Bank and the ATA calls on
industry operators to apply innovative approaches to managing the
different types of African tourism, which it categorizes as "safari,"
"nature" and "culture." The report recommends "going beyond
traditional safari to include new adventures" by tapping tour
operators' creativity.
Nature tourism, including gorilla tracking, presents opportunities.
More than 700 mountain gorillas live in the Virunga Mountains that
span Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Faced with political instability, the DRC is trying to attract
tourists by charging lower rates than Rwanda and Uganda. In 2011 the
three countries raked in a total of $225 million from gorilla tourism.
Through the website www.friendagorilla.org, tourists pay to track
gorillas using webcams. It is also possible to "friend" a gorilla on
the social network Facebook. Raising awareness of gorilla tourism
through social media may attract more tourists from different parts of
the world. More tourists mean more money spent on hotels, restaurants,
tour guides and souvenirs, stimulating local economies.
Culture tourism requires aggressive promotion. Like food festivals in
Mexico and music and cultural festivals in Jamaica and Trinidad,
African festivals can draw visitors. Film festivals in Zanzibar and
Burkina Faso attract culture tourists. Africa needs to "develop
flagship tourist attractions and communicate brand effectively,"
advises a McKinsey report.
Africa's domestic tourism (by resident visitors) has been flagging.
Not more than half of Kenyan chief executives have seen an elephant,
notes Victoria Safari, a Kenyan tourism company. "Africans should know
Africa better than the white person from outside," it adds,
recommending cheaper transportation rates and ease of travel to
encourage African tourists. Currently it costs about $1,500 to travel
1,800 miles from Luanda, Angola, to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, but only
$1,100 to go from London to Dar es Salaam, a distance of 4,600 miles.
Bright prospects
Some countries are moving in the right direction. Frommer's, a US
travel guide series, named Ethiopia one of the world's top 12
destinations in 2007. The 2010 World Cup in South Africa attracted
more than 300,000 foreign visitors. Only recently, renowned
international singer Youssou N'Dour became Senegal's minister of
culture and tourism, which may help boost tourism in his country.
It may take some time before Africa catches up with Europe, which
received 480 million tourists last year. But as international arrivals
hit the milestone of 1 billion worldwide in 2012, Africa should aim
for a bigger slice of the pie. The right infrastructure, safety and
security, and effective communication of the continent's attractions
can be starting points.
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