Diaspora Can Help Rebuild Africa's Image
African Eye News Service (Nelspruit)
March 12, 2002
Posted to the web March 12, 2002
Sharon Hammond
Nelspruit
The continuing African diaspora can contribute significantly to rebuilding
the continent's image around the world, says Rwandan minister of commerce,
industry and tourism Dr Alexandre Lyambabaje.
Speaking at the recent African peace through tourism conference in
Nelspruit, Mpumalanga, he said the diaspora could market their countries of
origin and boost foreign investment.
"But people in diaspora are poorly informed about their countries of origin
and disconnected regarding social and economic realities there," he added.
He said Rwanda organised the first meeting of its diaspora in December last
year to encourage them to boost the country's image as a tourism
destination.
The country lost tourism revenue during the civil war and mass genocide
between 1990 and 1994, but was slowly beginning to recover, he said.
The conference discussed tourism as a catalyst for economic, environmental
and human resource development in Africa, and means to facilitate the growth
of small businesses in the tourism sector, alleviating poverty.
It also discussed healing the wounds of conflict through tourism.
According to the Development Bank of Southern Africa, about 40% of the world
's civil war and strife was fought in sub-Saharan Africa between 1990 and
1995.
"In Rwanda, we see tourism as a major contributor to future stability and
lasting peace in the Great Lakes region," Dr Lyambabaje said.
By 2020 Rwanda wants its Virunga National Park to become a world heritage
site and transfrontier park with the Democratic Republic of Congo and
Uganda.
He said regional tourism should be encouraged so neighbours could learn to
tolerate each other's cultures and better understand issues of mutual
security and economic interests.
Yet Africans were not as able to move as freely on the continent as visitors
from developed countries, he added.
"Regional tourism by Africans is strongly constrained by visa costs,
administrative formalities at borders, fear of poor neighbours and lack of
affordable transport facilities," he explained.
He said domestic tourism also needed to be tapped into because it not only
allowed citizens to see how their country was managed, but created an
understanding of social, natural and cultural differences and constraints
within their borders.
International tourism was especially sought after, but if not well managed,
could lead to a negative impact on the environment, erosion of moral values
and culture and development of an inferiority complex amongst local people,
he added.
Within the next 20 years, however, Rwanda hopes to transform into a major
adventure, cultural and eco-tourism destination in Africa.
"We want to make tourism a pillar of our economy," said Dr Lyambabaje.
Over 300 delegates from across Africa attended the African peace through
tourism conference. It was held ahead of the global summit of the Institute
for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT) which will be held in Geneva, Switzerland
in October.
The next IIPT conference will be held in Tanzania next year.
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