BEYOND THE TOUIRST TRAIL
The devastating impact of the Covid-19 crisis has been felt across Africa, not least in national parks, reserves and wildlife areas. With the dramatic loss of tourism, jobs have disappeared. Poverty has increased. Poaching has risen, fuelled by people’s need to eat or sell meat. There’s less money for vital conservation work.
‘The crisis has shown the vulnerability of depending on tourism as an income source,’ says Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, a Ugandan vet and founder of Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH), that protects mountain gorillas and other wildlife. ‘Dependent communities are left with nothing to survive on. And it’s been a wake-up call to realize how much tourism is sustaining conservation efforts.’
Around the world, wildlife tourism supports 21.8 million jobs. Before the crisis, it was contributing $23.9 billion a year to the African economy. Gorilla tourism in Uganda alone brings in an estimated $34.3 million and contributes 60 per cent of the Uganda Wildlife Authority’s revenue. But, according to the World Tourism Organization, visitor numbers to
