| Diversifying Tourism Away from the Serengeti
The World Bank study admitted that an eightfold growth in tourism would be a problem for the already popular “northern circuit,” the Serengeti, Tarangire, Manyara, and Ngorongoro. Tourism, it advised, needs to be diversified to other parks and reserves in the “southern circuit,” including Ruaha, Mikumi, Katavi, and Selous (now Nyerere National Park).
Wisely, Tanzania has adopted this strategy. And the World Bank has given $150 million to develop four national parks in its Resilient Natural Resource Management for Tourism and Growth (REGROW) project.
There is an obvious problem. The marketing will be formidable. After investing so much time and money for perhaps their only trip to Africa, travelers will want to see the world-famous Serengeti and nearby Ngorongoro Crater. Will they want to go to parks they’ve never heard of?
A Bad Start: Reports of Evictions, Violence, and Roads
In Ruaha National Park, there are accusations of forced evictions of “tens of thousands of Indigenous and local communities.” In a recent report, The Oakland Institute says the World Bank is enabling the violent tactics of the Tanzanian government to increase tourism revenue.” It says rangers “are implicated in murders of several villagers and numerous incidents of violence since the project began in 2017.” And “Government agencies are also seizing and auctioning cattle in large numbers.”
World Bank Accused of Supporting Evictions, Rights Abuses at Tanzanian Park
Tanzanian farmers are paying for “conservation” with their land and lives
If true, it is similar to what’s happened to communities next to the Serengeti. Maasai have been forcefully evicted from an area they formerly used for grazing. And tens of thousands more are facing potential eviction from the Ngorongoro area. All of this is being justified in the name of conservation and tourism.
In Katavi National Park another story is unfolding, tragically reminiscent of the Serengeti Highway that Serengeti Watch fought so hard to stop. Katavi is a large park with plentiful wildlife. Though remote and less visited, it holds great promise for diversifying tourism. Now the world has been alerted to a terrible decision to build a paved road through the park.
Road upgrade through remote Tanzanian park threatens wildlife
This road would run right through the center of the park though it could easily be built around it. At least 188,000 trees would be cut. But the big problem is that it will be paved, leading to fast commercial traffic, road kills and a degraded ecosystem. The decision was reportedly made against the advice of Tanzania’s national park authorities for political reasons.
Another area in the southern circuit, Mikumi National Park, has a paved road crossing it which for years has led to high wildlife mortality. The Chinese government is providing sensors to monitor traffic and hopefully slow it down.
Finally, there is Nyerere National Park. the former Selous Reserve, at one time the largest wildlife reserve in Africa. The elephant population there has been decimated by 90% through poaching. Then government dammed the Rufiji River to create hydro power, flooding a vast area.
There are many questions to resolve before pushing tourism growth:
- Will local communities be treated fairly and benefit from tourism?
- Can ecosystems withstand large numbers of visitors?
- Can long-term conservation withstand short-term political interests?
- How can we avoid a zero-sum tradeoff between wildlife and people?
- Finally, will tourists really want to visit places if they know local people have been abused and uprooted?
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