Edition 35: Summer 2006
Campaigners for conservation are
celebrating a breakthrough: there’s evidence to suggest that an
increasing number of African leaders now acknowledge that their
nation’s wildlife and natural beauty could be the key to reducing
poverty.
They’re also aware that by branding their country as an eco-destination they can attract high-spending visitors.
Several African countries are looking closely at the role that
ecotourism and responsible tourism can play, both in preserving the
natural environment and in spreading wealth to impoverished
communities. Rwanda and Madagascar are at the forefront of the trend.
Each year, 5% of the income generated by visitors to Rwanda’s national
parks is redistributed to local communities for economic and social
projects of their choice. Some have chosen schools and clinics, others
help with agriculture and businesses.
A recent international conservation conference in Madagascar, The
Global Symposium, showed that well-run ecotourism can be a strong,
positive force for change. The conference was organised by the
environmental group, Conservation International, whose vice-president, Olivier Langrand, believes that promoting the image of
African countries as bastions of conservation will in turn bring real
benefits to the poorest people. “The world has a romantic idea of
Africa, as far as nature is concerned,” he says. “We have to build on
this idea to make nature the economic force for the development of
Africa. Biodiversity is the main asset of many African countries. They
need to use this asset to foster economic development. Nature is their
main commodity.”
Only Brazil has more biodiversity than Madagascar, which is home to unique species like lemurs,
chameleons and tropical fish. Yet much of the island’s flora and fauna
is threatened by deforestation, which in turn has been blamed to a
large extent on grinding poverty; three quarters of Madagascar’s
population live on less than half a dollar a day. As more and more
western tourists choose to travel responsibly, actively re-branding the
country as a top eco-travel destination could give Madagascar’s tourist
industry a major boost.
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