Here comes new tourism frontier

Editorial Cartoon

One can travel back in time, and not only in one’s youth to advise on a few dos and don’ts, but much farther back. Let us say a million years ago, when hominids first walked planet Earth.

 

All you have to do is to make a trip to Arusha Region. This is where early this month, Tanzania and US researchers working at Olduvai Gorge and Laetoli archeological sites reported fresh findings that they say will re-write the history of humankind.

 

Prof Fidelis Massao of the University of Dar es Salaam’s Department of History and Archaeology has described the discoveries to The Guardian, saying they are discoveries of the millennia that would render all works by palaeontologists Dr Louis and Mary Leakey “obsolete when they are made public”.

Describing them as “very strange sightings never dreamed of before”, the academic quipped: “Once revealed, the world will be flocking en-masse to Olduvai to get a glimpse of our findings.”

 

Godfrey ole Moita, head of the Laetoli archaeological site, confirmed the discoveries, which he said will “hold the world spellbound when publicized” and “will absolutely revolutionise human history as we know it”.

 

More importantly, he said the discoveries would change Tanzania’s tourism from the current wildlife focus to one of time travelling, retracing mankind’s past existence in the world.

 

What is stunning the world is that, while other countries are already making great use of the discoveries by the Leakeys to beef up attractions in their homes, it looks as if Tanzania is gaining little from them.

 

One such country is South Africa. According to its deputy chairperson for tourism, Zweli Vincent Mntambo, the country is working on a project dubbed Palaeotourism and the Olduvai Gorge and Laetoli archaeological sites are their main focus in the mission to bring the world to Africa to retrace their human roots.

 

The all-important dollar question is why Tanzania should not reap maximum benefits from any of these visits.

 

Tanzania’s tourism sector is haunted by the same ghosts that make virtual nonsense of the mining sector which for years has given the world its precious stones and metals but millions of our people still languish in poverty.

There is also fear that the wealth of oil and gas findings may for long not translate into improved life or most Tanzanians.

 

South Africa’s focus on Tanzania’s discoveries is as good as what the rest of East Africans are doing to Tanzania. There is abundant proof that Tanzania’s riches are being used by some of our neighbours to better their lot.

 

Perhaps other pertinent questions relate to how long this state will continue to recur and whether we really want to take bold step to spare ourselves the misery and disgrace resulting from abject poverty in the midst of plenty.

 

We don’t lack sound business frameworks, capacity and capital to tap these tourist resources for the benefit of the country, so just what is the problem?

Whatever the outcomes of this epoch-making research, tapping the riches of Olduvai and Laetoli is well within our nation’s capability. It is high time the government took the right strategies to tap these discoveries instead of leaving them to be up for grabs for the rest of the world.

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN