Experți în turism și conservare: faunei sălbatice din Africa în pericol grav

“Africa must use The Africa Day to protect what we have and think on how proud are we in our continent,” St.Ange stressed.

“My appeal to Africa: Let us be proud to what we have in Africa,” said St. Ange, the former Minister of Tourism and Culture of the Republic of the Seychelles.

He noted that COVID-19 impacts have adversely affected tourism in Africa at a time when efforts to protect wildlife are going on with African governments working hard to fight poaching under economic hardships caused by a downturn in tourism revenues.

“Let us work together with our governments in protection of wildlife and nature then discouraging poaching,” said St.Ange.

Mr. Theotimos Rwegasira from the Tanzania Anti-Poaching Unit said that wildlife has been a major drive of Tanzania’s tourism and the leading magnet of tourists visiting this African destination.

Rwegasira noted that 80 percent of Tanzania’s tourism is wildlife-based, creating over 1.6 million jobs directly and indirectly, but poaching has adversely affected tourism in Tanzania and other countries in Africa due to the loss of animals.

He noted that Tanzania is now fighting organized crime against wildlife with a full commitment to combat poaching through amendments of laws and the establishment of a Paramilitary Unit that is now taking place in all the wildlife parks.

Chairman of the African Tourism Board, Mr. Cuthbert Ncube, said that poaching has been a thorn for Africa’s wildlife conservation as poaching syndicates within and outside the continent are operating smoothly to undermine tourism development in Africa.

The ATB Chairman noted that a serial of barons is behind poaching in Africa, sponsoring the poachers with heavy guns and money.

“We target the foot poachers, leaving alone the barons,” noted the ATB Chairman.

On the other hand, Mr. Ncube said the African communities are crucial in wildlife conservation and protection since involvement of communities would guarantee conservation efforts.

Establishment of community-based tourism would involve African communities in protecting wildlife through direct interventions and benefit sharing between communities and conservation institutions, Ncube said.

“Let us join hands together. Africa should unite to fight poaching,” the ATB Chairman concluded.

In recognition of the noble task on conservation of wildlife in Africa, Polar Projects in association with the African Tourism Board (ATB) has been organizing the African Tourism Showcase Series via zoom meetings with invitations to tourism ministers from African countries to discuss efforts on anti-poaching in African tourism.

The zoom meetings have also attracted wildlife conservation officials and experts to discuss and then exchange ideas on best options to combat poaching in Africa.