Tourism earnings depend on resolve

News 

Monday, March 03, 2014 

There is no doubt about the sustainability and the positive impact the travel and tourism industry has on a global level. 

The  only question is whether the East African Community (EAC) has the resolve to compete with the best of them worldwide?

The situation in Egypt has hit their formerly multi-billion tourism industry very hard. The question we should be asking ourselves in the EAC, is where have those tourists gone? Why isn’t there a campaign to lure them here?

South Africa is the EAC’s main rival for foreign visitors and there are not sitting still. Last week, the South African Tourist Authority opened a marketing office in Lagos, Nigeria. This makes perfect sense considering the fastest growing middle class is in Nigeria.

Others further afield are no less active. Again last week, the island state of Singapore set aside nearly $800 million for a new Tourist Development Fund. Recently, Singapore also opened a $160 million zoo. The Singaporeans have started a campaign that revolves around the best customer service.

Zoos are the EAC’s worst enemy, because they deny the region money that otherwise visitors would have used to view our national parks.

The official launch of the Single Tourist Visa was a signal that we are heading in the right direction. However much more is needed if we are to stay among the leaders. 

Although national operators may only see the short term losses, working together as one tourist destination is still the best way forward.

 Both tourist organisations, the WTTC and the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) say that the travel and tourism industry generates a six times higher employment rate and five times more employees worldwide in comparison to most other industries.

According to the UNWTO, France attracted the most tourists in 2012, but only managed to generate approximately $53.7 billion from those tourists.

 But the United States, which only attracted 67 million tourists last year but generated a massive $126.2 billion in revenue. On the other hand, the most popular sector  in tourism and which is also controversial for some countries, is gambling. Thanks to the its close vicinity to China, little Macau is leaving Las Vagas in the dust by earning over $40 billion last year, 30% more than the famous US city.

And it remains one of its fastest growing economic sectors. For many countries, including the EAC, tourism is seen as a main instrument for regional development, as it stimulates new economic activities. 

It has a positive economic impact on the balance of payments, on employment, on gross income and production, but it may also have negative effects, particularly on the environment. 

Sustainable tourism has three interconnected aspects: environmental, socio-cultural, and economic. Sustainability implies permanence, so sustainable tourism includes optimum use of resources, including biological diversity; minimization of ecological, cultural and social impacts; and maximization of benefits for conservation and local communities.

All these aspects matter if we are to make good money out of tourism. 

However the region has yet to come out with an imaginative EAC blueprint, even as poachers slaughter our elephants in ever higher numbers. We need the resolve to make things happen.

By Editor, Monday, March 03rd, 2014

Tourism earnings depend on resolve