Tourism ignored by the G8 Summit and Make Poverty History
It appears that the G8 Summit, and The Commission for Africa and the Make Poverty History Campaign, do not consider the tourism industry (the so called largest industry in the world) to be important for reducing poverty in Africa, despite considerable evidence to the contrary.
The G8 Summit
Search for tourism on the G8 website ( www.g8.gov.uk ) and you will find plugs for the Scottish tourism industry, but nothing about the role of responsible tourism to help reduce poverty in Africa.
Furthermore www.commissionforafrica.org & www.makepovertyhistory.org also contain no reference to the tourisms potential to reduce poverty, or any strategies to ensure that this might happen.
Tourism and poverty: the facts
African tourism revenues are far bigger than aid budgets. In 2002 International Tourism receipts in Africa were $11.8bn (WTO). With responsible tourism up to 70% of the cost of a holiday, excluding flights, would remain in Africa. By comparison the US aid budget to Africa is just $674m.
African tourism can grow significantly - Africa attracts just 2.49% (2002, WTO) of international tourist arrivals. By comparison Asia generates 19.97% of international arrivals.
Africa - with 53 countries, 22% of the world's land mass, 690 million people, 1000 mammals, 1000 languages and more than 3000 unique tribal groups - attracts less than a third of international tourism receipts than Spain does ($11.8bn vs $33bn)
For example, in Tanzania tourism is 8.2% of GDP, and has grown over 1000% in the last ten years.
Tourism is labour intensive (only agriculture among major industries is more labour intensive) and therefore a very significant employer. Responsible tourism ventures often employ the economically marginalized, including women.
Unlike other economic sectors tourism can be built from the assets of local people, such as their traditions, festivals, land and natural and built heritage. This, and the fact that tourists are often attracted to remote places, means that responsible tourism can potentially benefit the truly poor.
Unlike many other economic sectors tourism is not subject to crippling export trade tariffs designed to protect Western economies. This is because the consumer (tourist) travels to the product (the tourist destination).
What should the G8 leaders do?
responsibletravel.com's request for G8 leaders The G8 leaders should ensure that their Governments have national strategies to ensure that the tourism industry based in their countries and operating holidays to Africa is run to maximise benefits to local African communities. Britain must lead the way and create the first national responsible tourism in Africa strategy through The Travel Foundation, which it supports.
Justin Francis, co-founder of responsibletravel.com said -
Responsible tourism, that is more authentic tourism that maximises the benefits to local people whilst minimising any negative environmental impacts is the sleeping giant of the economies of many African communities.
Compared to many other economic sectors (such as extractive industries) tourism is well positioned to benefit the truly poor, as it is their assets - such as cultures, land and wildlife - that people come to see. However without G8 countries ensuring that their tourism industries to Africa operate in a responsible way its the same old story - Western and developed nations exploiting Africa for profit.
Tourism and global warming
Lets not mince words. Airline travel is the fastest growing cause of global warming. The government expects passenger numbers to double by 2030, by which time air travel will be the biggest contributor to global warming.
In May Margaret Beckett said 'climate degradation and poverty feed off each other, and a predicted 4C rise in average temperatures in the centre of Africa will have devastating consequences.'
So if we argue that the tourism industry in Africa can help reduce poverty, how do we deal with emissions from plane journeys by tourists?
The airline industry can create more fuel efficient planes. The Sustainable Aviation Group (including BA & Virgin) aims to introduce new aircraft producing 50% less CO2 than 2000 models.
These efficiency improvements will not however keep pace with the growing demand for flights. The airline industry must be further incentivised by the EU to reduce emissions by being required to buy permits to cover their carbon emissions (The European Emissions Trading Scheme) in 2008 or before.
Money generated from purchase of permits - and from the existing air passenger duty - must be spent on sustainable energy projects that also benefit the poor*, as well as tree planting to absorb CO2, and fund research into renewable energy.
The cost of flights will go up as the airlines pass these costs on. These higher prices of flights will reflect the true cost (including environmental damage) of flights. This will reduce passenger numbers.
In the meantime tourists can offset their emissions to become carbon neutral - for 4 years responsibletravel.com clients have been using a carbon calculator on our site to do this through our partnership with Climate Care and Future Forests.
*The latest Climate Care project brings together sustainable development and poverty reduction, with ways to reduce carbon emissions & deforestation (forests absorb CO2) - The traditional open wood stove provides a vital source of heat and energy for some of the poorest communities across the world. Yet these stoves can have a devastating impact on the health of the women and children who gather around them - and for the local forests which are harvested for fuel, and absorb CO2. A new series of stoves that draw air into the combustion chamber generates a very clean burn, reduced emissions and deforestation. A crucial additional benefit of this is that smoke from the stove is drastically reduced.
Case histories of how tourism in africa can benefit the poor are available on request from responsibletravel.com
For more information:
Justin Francis
Justin@responsibletravel.com
07787 555088 (m)
responsibletravel.com is one of the fastest growing travel online travel agencies in the UK, and lobbies for more responsible tourism.
The G8 Summit
Search for tourism on the G8 website ( www.g8.gov.uk ) and you will find plugs for the Scottish tourism industry, but nothing about the role of responsible tourism to help reduce poverty in Africa.
Furthermore www.commissionforafrica.org & www.makepovertyhistory.org also contain no reference to the tourisms potential to reduce poverty, or any strategies to ensure that this might happen.
Tourism and poverty: the facts
African tourism revenues are far bigger than aid budgets. In 2002 International Tourism receipts in Africa were $11.8bn (WTO). With responsible tourism up to 70% of the cost of a holiday, excluding flights, would remain in Africa. By comparison the US aid budget to Africa is just $674m.
African tourism can grow significantly - Africa attracts just 2.49% (2002, WTO) of international tourist arrivals. By comparison Asia generates 19.97% of international arrivals.
Africa - with 53 countries, 22% of the world's land mass, 690 million people, 1000 mammals, 1000 languages and more than 3000 unique tribal groups - attracts less than a third of international tourism receipts than Spain does ($11.8bn vs $33bn)
For example, in Tanzania tourism is 8.2% of GDP, and has grown over 1000% in the last ten years.
Tourism is labour intensive (only agriculture among major industries is more labour intensive) and therefore a very significant employer. Responsible tourism ventures often employ the economically marginalized, including women.
Unlike other economic sectors tourism can be built from the assets of local people, such as their traditions, festivals, land and natural and built heritage. This, and the fact that tourists are often attracted to remote places, means that responsible tourism can potentially benefit the truly poor.
Unlike many other economic sectors tourism is not subject to crippling export trade tariffs designed to protect Western economies. This is because the consumer (tourist) travels to the product (the tourist destination).
What should the G8 leaders do?
responsibletravel.com's request for G8 leaders The G8 leaders should ensure that their Governments have national strategies to ensure that the tourism industry based in their countries and operating holidays to Africa is run to maximise benefits to local African communities. Britain must lead the way and create the first national responsible tourism in Africa strategy through The Travel Foundation, which it supports.
Justin Francis, co-founder of responsibletravel.com said -
Responsible tourism, that is more authentic tourism that maximises the benefits to local people whilst minimising any negative environmental impacts is the sleeping giant of the economies of many African communities.
Compared to many other economic sectors (such as extractive industries) tourism is well positioned to benefit the truly poor, as it is their assets - such as cultures, land and wildlife - that people come to see. However without G8 countries ensuring that their tourism industries to Africa operate in a responsible way its the same old story - Western and developed nations exploiting Africa for profit.
Tourism and global warming
Lets not mince words. Airline travel is the fastest growing cause of global warming. The government expects passenger numbers to double by 2030, by which time air travel will be the biggest contributor to global warming.
In May Margaret Beckett said 'climate degradation and poverty feed off each other, and a predicted 4C rise in average temperatures in the centre of Africa will have devastating consequences.'
So if we argue that the tourism industry in Africa can help reduce poverty, how do we deal with emissions from plane journeys by tourists?
The airline industry can create more fuel efficient planes. The Sustainable Aviation Group (including BA & Virgin) aims to introduce new aircraft producing 50% less CO2 than 2000 models.
These efficiency improvements will not however keep pace with the growing demand for flights. The airline industry must be further incentivised by the EU to reduce emissions by being required to buy permits to cover their carbon emissions (The European Emissions Trading Scheme) in 2008 or before.
Money generated from purchase of permits - and from the existing air passenger duty - must be spent on sustainable energy projects that also benefit the poor*, as well as tree planting to absorb CO2, and fund research into renewable energy.
The cost of flights will go up as the airlines pass these costs on. These higher prices of flights will reflect the true cost (including environmental damage) of flights. This will reduce passenger numbers.
In the meantime tourists can offset their emissions to become carbon neutral - for 4 years responsibletravel.com clients have been using a carbon calculator on our site to do this through our partnership with Climate Care and Future Forests.
*The latest Climate Care project brings together sustainable development and poverty reduction, with ways to reduce carbon emissions & deforestation (forests absorb CO2) - The traditional open wood stove provides a vital source of heat and energy for some of the poorest communities across the world. Yet these stoves can have a devastating impact on the health of the women and children who gather around them - and for the local forests which are harvested for fuel, and absorb CO2. A new series of stoves that draw air into the combustion chamber generates a very clean burn, reduced emissions and deforestation. A crucial additional benefit of this is that smoke from the stove is drastically reduced.
Case histories of how tourism in africa can benefit the poor are available on request from responsibletravel.com
For more information:
Justin Francis
Justin@responsibletravel.com
07787 555088 (m)
responsibletravel.com is one of the fastest growing travel online travel agencies in the UK, and lobbies for more responsible tourism.