Tanzania: Youths Drum Up Support for Eco-Tourism

Arusha — ABOUT 50 youths who participated in the maiden Saudi-Tanzanian Youth Forum and dialogues have dispatched special messages to Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete and Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, urging them to cement cooperation in tourism between their two countries.

In their joint statements at the climax of the dialogues on biodiversity which had been taking place here for the last two weeks, the youths called on the two leaders to establish special areas for eco-tourism in their respective countries.

The letters from Bilateral Youth Group were read during the closing ceremony by Ms Rayan Hejles-Fir from Saudi Arabia and her Tanzanian counterpart, Hans Cosmas-Ngoteya, while another dispatch from Multilateral Youth Group was read by Ms Zainab Abdallah from Tanzania and Ms Haifa Al Bassam from Saudi Arabia.

The first ever bilateral Youth Dialogue Forum on matters of biodiversity was hosted by the Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) under the theme, 'Construction and implementation of the regulatory framework for biodiversity conservation.'

"The youths also toured Arusha, Tarangire and Serengeti national parks, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority, the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute and Mweka College of Wildlife, enjoying the opportunity to interact and discuss the future of biodiversity conservation in the two countries," stated Dr Allan Kijazi, TANAPA Director General.

Dr Kijazi lauded Saudi Arabia for selecting Tanzania to be the first country in hosting the forum, assuring that positive outcomes should be expected from the dialogues and that TANAPA intended to organize similar dialogues with other countries in future.

The DG said TANAPA, being the custodian of the country's 16 national parks, felt proud to host the international dialogues and used the occasion to request the Saudi government to assist Tanzania in the war against poaching.

The Minister for Natural resources and Tourism, Mr Lazaro Nyalandu, said the Saudi team, which also placed high priority on religion and spiritual development of the mind, must have felt at home in the well-conserved parts of Tanzania which had maintained their original profiles since creation.

Saudi Princess Haifa Bint Abdul Aziz, who visited the country last month and happened to be the coordinator of the forum, said the forum was taking place for the first time in Africa and Tanzania was chosen to host it due to its historical background and commitment to protecting wildlife and natural resources, supported by peace and security prevailing in the country.

The youth forum is an initiative by King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz for dialogue among forums worldwide under the Saudi International Youth Dialogue Forums programme.

The forums provide a platform for Saudi youths to interact with their peers from different countries, while adopting their creative initiatives and solutions under various themes.