As reported in the Daily Observer today, the tourism industry is facing an
unmitigating disaster this season. They are expecting the lowest number of
visitors ever, continuing a downward spiral that if unchecked might doom the
industry entirely. The thousands of people who make their living either
directly or through associated services catering to tourism would sadly be
consigned to what this government wrought on the larger Gambian community be
it farmers, civil servants and small businesspeople. A sector as crucial and
full of potential as Tourism is left to literally wither in the vines through
lack of funding, poor management and utter callousness. What Yahya Jammeh has
done is to allocate a few million Dalasis (about D6million the last time I
checked) and appoint  a political hatchetman who doesn't even know how to
fold a napkin much less improve the hospitality industry. The few talented
people in the ministry who can actually craft  ideas lack the clout to see
their work through. As a result while Tourism officials from other countries
use valuable time and effort courting business and persuading operators to
come to Cape verde or Senegal, Yankuba Touray is busy frothing his mouth
about how great Yahya  Jammeh is and how he intends to give this to that
group in two years! The result is very predictable in that he will almost
certainly run the industry to the ground because the remaining hotels can't
sustain operations much less grow if the visitors are choosing somewhereelse.
The industry receives no tangible incentives and must often times contend
with ever-increasing tax rates, onerous regulations and a host of other
circumstances not conducive to business in general. What the industry needs
most is a government that is focused on nurturing the private sector in
general and is committed to making it the engine of growth and prosperity. In
their case, such a government would make tourism a priority by establishing a
professionally run and adequately funded agency with a clear mandate to
aggressively court tour operators to bring in the visitors. Parallel to that,
the gov't would work with the industry to help them improve services through
incentive provisions and other ancillary things the gov't can do to make
their visitors have a pleasant stay. Part of the reason some visitors don't
return is because as it is ,Gambia provides a qualitatively inadequate
experience for visitors compared to our competitors. It is a disgrace that
even the very few sites we offer to our visitors be in Juffuray or Fort
bullen are so poorly kept or organized that going there is much of a chore
than a nice outing. Having some poor lady mumbling on a ramshackle stool
about Kunta Kinteh is not a profound encounter for anybody and the truth is
there is sufficient history and sites to make them all great.Another option a
different gov't would consider is to initiate a partnering scheme in which
tax rates for Tourism related businesses would be reduced with the
understanding that savings realized would be invested into improving
services. The rationale for such a deal would be that an improved product
would in the longer term grow the industry and also serve as a strong
incentive for newcomers to come in an invest. You will not attract investors
into country with near confiscatory taxes coupled with a government that is
generally considered vile and indolent.
      In the meantime the good people of the tourism industry would have to
endure another failed season with all its effect on the people who are trying
do their bit to both take care of their families and lift the nation in the
process. Like the rest of the nation they have this albatross called Yahya
Jammeh hanging over their neck. He and his cronies who collectively are
unlikely to succeed in any merit based endeavor have nonetheless made
themselves custodians of our nation's fate. What they have done to destroy
tourism is representative of  their overall record spanning the gov't . They
have neither the ability nor even the inclination to do right by the tourism
industry . They would substitute lies and threats for substantive policies
and would prefer to add you to their incedious grand scheme of putting as
many people as they can on a charity leash with people owing their
livelihoods to crumbs fed to them by Yahya himself. He wants people to queue
at his feet be it through gov't or his socalled charities  to beg for a
living after he has consciously and deliberately destroyed your best
available means of sustenance. This is how tyrants scheme to control and
ultimately enslave their people.
   The gov't would soon come out with another canard about  how they have
great plans for the 2002 season with silly claims of visions worse than a
pipe dream . The only salvation is they would not be around come that time
and we would have a gov't that would finally work  with the industry to move
forward.
Karamba

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