Arusha — AN average of 70,000 foreign visitors per annum have sampled
the country's cultural tourism packages in recent years but the figure,
according to the coordinator of Tanzania Cultural Tourism, Mr Elirehema
Maturo, is still relatively low.
Speaking at the threshold of the ongoing conference on Community and
Tourism taking place here in sync with the World Tourism Week, Mr
Maturo, said cultural tourism is growing, albeit slowly with 85 new
cultural tourism modules applying for registration in the Northern and
Lake Zones regions.
Tanzania Cultural Tourism, an initiative started in the country back
in 1996 with support from the Netherlands' Developing Agency (SNV) with
an average of 600 annual visitors, a figure which has multiplied tenfold
but could be higher if it was promoted as the mainstream wildlife
tourism.
Director of Tourism, Mr Zahoro Kimwaga, said government has conducted
research in the segment and found out that the number of visitors who
want to sample Tanzanian culture, are increasing and a special programme
was started to ensure that each village in the country forms its own
cultural tourism centre to promote the specialised sector as well as
earn incomes.
Permanent Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Tourism and Natural
Resources, Ms Maimuna Tarishi, said, "Tanzania has over 120 tribes and
if each of these ethnic groups could sell their customs and traditions,
then the country stands to have 100 more tourists sites in addition to
the national parks and over game reserves that are already the staple of
the local tourism package," she pointed out.
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