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Places & Regions
Ruaha National Park: A tourism gem
Posted: Friday July 17, 2009 1:16 PM BT
Iringa a is one of the Big Four regions which are famous for their bumper harvests of food and cash crops. However, despite the region's commendable efforts to bring development to its people, tourism, a money spinner in the Northern Circuit, remains insignificant.
Endowed with (the natural heritage of Ruaha National Park, a wild land thai abounds with Greater Kudu and Sable antelopes, Iringa Rural District is a tourist treasure that can as well be called a unique pearl of wildlife.
It is a wildlife sanctuary district authorities love to announce with pride. "It is a transition zone where Eastern and Southern African species of fauna and flora overlap," says Tina Sekambo, the District Executive Director. The district's natural and cultural resources spread across areas of different status including national parks, game controlled areas, wildlife manage¬ment zones and open areas. A tourism officer with the district council, Hawa Mwichagga, says that owing to its abundance of wildlife, Iringa is the most protected area where it is easy to see Grant's gazelles, striped hyenas, elephants, giraffes, lions endangered species of wild dogs, aquatic animals like crocodiles and hippopotamus. The tourism sector accounts for 17.2 per cent of the country's GDP and contributes nearly 28 per cent of total export earnings, making it the country's leading export sector, according to a Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism report. The sector employs about 300,000 people while generating some 25,000 new jobs annually. A recent presentation by Mrs. A. Pamba, Director of Tourism in the Ministry, reports of how tourism in the southern circuit has performed well. Between (the year 2000 and 2005 accommodation establishments for Iringa and Mbeya increased by 46.9 per cent com¬pared to an average of 10 per cent growth in the previous years. However, the global economic meltdown has hit hard Tanzania's southern tourist treasure as compared to the situation in other parts of the country. "Normally by January through February all hotels are full. This year they are not and most bookings have been cancelled," Mwaichagga told the 'Daily News' earlier this month in her office in Iringa. As a result of the world depression, tourist, organizations in the country have suffered heavy financial losses, a late that has necessitated diversification. Some businesses have closed down all together. To promote and improve the tourist sector, Iringa Rural District, in close collaboration with the people, has identified 30 attractive centres during the financial year 2006/7. "These centres include ecological historical and cultural sites," Mwaichagga says. Investment in the tourism sector progresses well in the district. Already, four investors have set up tourism camps. Game hunting is already going on in one of the camps as a means of collecting revenue. Two ycare ago, the district formed an institution called Matumizi Bora ya Malihai Idodi ya Pawaga (MBOMIPA) to work with Ruaha National Park. "During 2006/07 financial year, MBOMIPA collected 196,000,000/- from wildlife resources through internal and external tourists," says Mwaichagga. By her account, a half of the funds were given to the villages of the two divisions to support development activities. Villagers' governments collaborate closely with the government and MBOMIPA in controlling poachers from these villages, which border the Ruaha National Park. "Villages around the national park are sole partners of the Ruaha National Park for the enhancement of park activities," Abel Mgimwa, the district's planning officer, says. Poaching and the economic global meltdown notwithstanding, Iringa Rural District is determined to soldier on. Presently it is planning to invest around Mtera Dam to do tourist pictures, boat trips and leisure fishing activities. There will also be six sites tor interested depositors to invest around Mtcra Dam. Already, several tourist centres a re present in the district Notable ones include Mlambalasi site near the grave of Chief Mkwawa of the Wahehe. Others are Kalenga and Ismila sites, which have been designed for maximum admiration. The good performance of the tourism sector, unfortunately, sutlers setbacks and disparities across the country. The lack of raids, railway networks and the absence of airports in the south of the country and the non-existent liaison between the north and the south explain these inconsistencies. The Tourism Master Plan, therefore, stresses the development of a circuit in the south. Moreover, during 2006/07, a governmental budget of six million US dollars was granted to finance diverse conservation and environmental protection programmes. "Numerous eco-tourism initiatives arc conducted across (he country," says a report from (he Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism. Today construction work is going on for MIambalasi centre carried out by the district council as part of its investment profile. Still, while the country's tourist northern circuit is rich in hotels, the southern one is suffering a severe shortage. "But it has created a good environment at the sites earmarked for hotel construction and picked Tunga-matenga Village as a tourist centre," Mwaichagga says. Following the government's determination to create an environment conducive to private investments, taking into account the preservation of Tanzania's natural beauty and landscape, travel and tourism is now a viable and appealing industry in which to invest. The various pieces of legislation put in place to attract local and foreign private investors are paying off. Investment opportunities concern all different categories, such as hotel construction, restaurants, or air and ground operations. In Tungamatenga Village more than 200 plots of land have been surveyed by the district for various kinds of investment. A market for the ward has been constructed in the area to provide marketing opportunities for farmers with people from the national park. With 14 national parks, 31 game reserves, 38 protected zones and numerous marine parks, Tanzania is a rich and rewarding safari destination. A quarter of the country comprises protected zones dedicated to wildlife. Ruaha National Park is a tourism gem that has proved to be a big source of revenue for Iringa District Council. During 2006/07 and 2007/08 MBOMI-. PA collected a total of 196,000,000/- from wildlife resources through domestic and foreign tourism. The park is operated by Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA). However, in a show of concerted national development, the council has a primary school in the park to cater for children of game man¬agement staff. The district does not get any direct income from the park. "But through MBOMIPA, the park provides funds, which provide good support in implementing village development projects," Sekambo notes. |
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