BURUNDI TOURISM IN FREE FALL
(Posted 06th September 2015)
Recent political unrest in Burundi, caused by the powergrab of regime leader Nkurunziza for what is broadly perceived as an attempt for an illegal third term in office, combined with a strict Visa in Advance policy, has thrown Burundi’s tourism industry into turmoil.
Tourism stakeholders from that country, present at last week’s East Africa Tourism Platform meeting in Kigali, acknowledged the difficulties the sector is facing and how the advances made when Carmen Nibigira was Director General of the Burundi Tourism office, have all but evaporated.
With few foreign embassies in place is it difficult for wannabe visitors to get the required Visa in advance which allow to experience the country’s few tourism attractions like Lake Tanganyika, Kibira Forest National Park which adjoins Rwanda’s Nyungwe Forest National Park as a trans-boundary eco system or Rusizi and Ruvubu national parks. Travel advisories too have become prohibitive to say the least, considering the sporadic outbreak of violence, keeping even the most intrepid travelers away. An added disadvantage is of course also Burundi’s refusal to become formal part of the Northern Corridor Intergration Project countries – Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya – which launched a common tourist Visa allowing tourists to visit all three countries, even cross over more than once to see the region’s safari parks, rivers, lakes and mountains.
Tourism stakeholders were naturally guarded in their comments and categorically refused to be named, when expressing their sentiments to this correspondent over the future of their businesses and the tourism sector in general. ‘This is a very difficult time for us. Instead of building on the advance we made when Carmen was still here [Carmen
Nibigira is now Coordinator at the East Africa Tourism Platform] circumstances have thrown it all away. They are trying here and there but the government has bigger problems right now than reviving tourism. Anyway, this cannot happen without Burundi joining the common tourist Visa programme and again giving Visa on arrival. Even the airlines are complaining that there are not enough foreign passengers. This has gone so far that some airlines might even start to reduce flights. Burundi has a lot of different things to offer but to package those attractions we need a change of heart by government. They have to support the sector and do the needful to create a better environment for our business. And we need good PR, good publicity because conservation is ongoing’ said two Burundians in summary of a lengthy conversation.
Other participants from Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda in the EATP B2B meetings expressed similar sentiments and, while professing interest to doing business with Burundian tour companies also universally said that circumstances have to change first before they can start to send tourists to Burundi again.
