BLOOM

enriching communities

ECOTOURISM
A promise toward Namibia 2030
Table of Contents
What is ecotourism 2
Ecotourism and local communities 3
Objectives of ecotourism 4
Who are the ecotourist 5
How can Namibia benefit from ecotourism 6
Ecotourism environmental, social and economic impacts 14
Conclusion 16
Reference 17
Ecotourism, as an alternative tourism, involves visiting natural areas in order
to learn, to study, or to carry out activities environmentally friendly, that is, a
tourism based on the nature experience, which enables the economic and social
development of local communities.
Kiper (2013)
Role of Ecotourism in Sustainable Development
 Ecotourism
What is Ecotourism?
People have their different reasons to travel. Some people travel to discover,
some travel for pleasure, some travel to experience foreign culture while
others travel to contribute for humanity. Some individuals travel because they
understand tourism is an important sector that impact on development of some
country’s economy. In some part of Africa, tourism is the main important source
of welfare. Hence tourist are interested in travelling to these countries and
contribute to a benefit of greater good, a type of travelling known as Ecotourism.

Ecotourism, as an alternative tourism, involves visiting natural areas in order

to learn, to study, or to carry out activities environmentally friendly, that is, a
tourism based on the nature experience, which enables the economic and
social development of local communities (Kiper 2013). Ecotourism is a form of
sustainable travel that supports the local environment instead of putting more
pressure on it and exploiting its resources. Ecotourism is a complex concept
growing in importance more and more each year. (Andrei 2016).

Ecotourism is responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the

environment and improves the well-being of local people.
The International Ecotourism Society (TIES)

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) defines ecotourism more conceptual

as “Environmentally responsible travel to natural areas, in order to enjoy and
appreciate nature (and accompanying cultural features, both past and present)
that promote conservation, have a low visitor impact and provide for beneficially
active socio-economic involvement of local peoples.”
All these definitions point out to the sustainability, preservation of ecological
habitats, tourism-based developments, economic returns for local communities
and the carrying use for the environment.

Local communities and ecotourism

Ecotourism helps in community development by providing the alternate source
of livelihood to local community which is more sustainable (Kiper 2013), hence
eco-tourism is aimed at improving the well-being of the local people along the
process.
The focus is for the direct benefits to be incurred by the locals, ecotourism
emphasis on the traditional management of the indigenous lands were tourists
travelling to this aspiring places will practices a non-consumptive use of wildlife
and natural resources and contributes to these visited areas through labor and
financial means aimed at directly benefiting the conservation of the site and the
economic well-being of the local residents.
It is an educative and innovative type of tourism were the local participation is
key to knowledge, incomes and local development. Ecotourism was therefore
established to recognize the livelihood and the importance of local residents to
independently uplift themselves by creating their own opportunities, craft their
own development and managing the long use of their natural wealth.
 Objectives of ecotourism

Among the philosophical objectives of Eco-tourism, the important is to promote

global association of communities, bring education and development to the
people, by experiencing our difficultness, survival and lifestyles. Kiper (2013)
interestingly point out that ecotourism focuses primarily on experiencing and
learning about nature, its landscape, flora, fauna and their habitats, as well as
cultural artifacts from the locality.
Ecotourism helps through involving local community for the conservation of
the ecology and biodiversity of the area that biodiversity in return provides the
economic incentives to the local community (Kiper 2013).
This concept ‘ecotourism’ convey the need for participation of local communities,
marking the turning theme to local and medium enterprises growth, ownership
and control of resources by local societies, promotion of local management and
engagement of local knowledge at management level. Hence the important
objective to mark here is the economic return to the rural communities, and
how their lives will be transformed by allowing the gains to be directly shared
to them.
 Who are the ecotourist?
Tourism today has become more than just a thriller but an opportunity to
experience even deeper into the cohesion of life. Tourist are interested in
visiting rivers and mountains and meeting the mountain people, the river
people, traditional communities and engaging with cultural groups. They want
to visit the Vamboland and meet the Vambo people, ride in the Zambezi River
and meet the Zambezi communities, tourism today is thrilled with reaching out
and learning about others.
Ecotourist therefore are the scientist, researchers, photographers and
humanitarian of nature who are looking and searching for something
extraordinary about life. Ecotourist are interested in experiencing different
lifestyles, learn how others survive, listen to their story, eat their food and figure
out how they can help with funding to improve living. Kiper (2013) outline that
ecotourism is inspired primarily by the natural history of an area, including
its indigenous cultures hence the visitors are only in the spirit of appreciation,
participation and sensitivity.
Duane Silverstein (Director of Seacology) explains that ecotourists want to feel
that they are experiencing a foreign culture and have opportunity to contribute
to a benefit of greater good. People selfishly want experiences that are real, they
want to meet the park rang¬er and want to help in an orphanage.
Ecotourist are those that are looking to positively impact on the life of others,
show them opportunities and fulfil their innermost human responsibility. There
is no other satisfying and desire met form of sharing other than ecotourism.
 How can Namibia
improve to benefit
and attract
Ecotourism?
Many travellers are looking for places where ecotourism has been introduced
and ultimately has brought greater significance to the region. The facts discussed
below are among those that can be dealt with, to alter the growth of ecotourism
in Namibia.

1. Community involvement
The ability of the national economy to benefit from tourism depends on the
availability of investment to develop the necessary infrastructure and on
its ability to supply the needs of tourists, (Agaraj & Murati 2009). Tourist are
searching for places with greater solidity in sharing of wealth, togetherness and
equality, hence societies that are developing together to improve the overall
living standard of all people are receiving magnitude of tourist every year.

Individuals like ecotourist are inspired by strength demonstrated by

communities to improve a particular situation of living. One cannot interest to
donate support where there is no action initiated. Therefore the community
involvement is number one key success to ecotourism growth in Namibia.

The introduction of tourism in school will also initiate a long stardom to

economic freedom. Educating children about tourism will empower their
approaching behaviours toward tourist, substituting the unnecessary mentality
of thinking tourist are opportunities of begging. Children says a lot about a
community, their behaviours, educational instincts, public approaches, health
and appearances are key judgements of progressively development. Children
who have been taught and familiar with tourism will understanding the need to
perform cultural themes that can embrace their cultures in the eye of tourists in
return putting a community on the map.
 Ouhongo Community Park
your stay, our pride ;

Came experience our cultural diverity, foods and beverages

The youth also need to feel involved or else will bargain from the tourists therefore
putting a bad image on the country which is displayed already in several part of
the country. The youth can take up the responsibility of introducing the tourists
to different sectors of the community, explaining the culture and demonstrating
the many choirs of our everyday lifestyle. In this sense we can have community
parks, community camping and lodges were travellers do not have to fear for
their lives.
The elders can stand as fundamental unity of culture, with their life long
experiences surely they have inspiring stories to tell, ornaments to display and
cultural richness to showcase.
Of course these are scenario that need researches and case studies to come
to implements. But their establishment means a further brighter step toward
community development. Our communities cannot reach 2030 on relief foods,
they have to cater for themselves toward achieving our outmost vision 2030.

Indigenous knowledge is more impressive and more attractive, having local

people as tour guides is a major concept to ecotourism. Remember that tourist
want to meet game rangers who know their place, local people who lived in such
place enough to notice all changes that happened. The community can take up
this responsibility to be tour guides for example the Okavango and Zambezi
people know everything about their rivers, they are the likely individuals that
can offer a lot to tourist who want to cruise along the rivers.

Ecotourists want to listen to a civilian who saw the meteorite land in his back
yard rather to a meteorologist who studied the meteorite. The civilian has a
story, a piece of documentation. Yet these civilians are relocated from such place
to make way for fencing and security. One could have attracted ecotourists if
could have turned the place into a “Meteorite community” were you have the
witness guiding the tourist, telling them his experience of that day.

It is not necessary excess education that we need to turn our country into a
tourism destination but the participation of communities in these areas. We
can start that through giving room for local lodges and camp sites to have their
places onto the maps and displaying their names beside the road.
Expensive lodges are all over the world, people want to experience beyond that.
Build a lodge right into the heart of a community where there is dancing at
night, traditional beverages, stories surrounding a big fire and lot of chatting,
that is the excitement we all want to put our money on. Our human excitements
lies in materials but they are omplete by the presence of other, in the livelihood
of others and in the caring and surrounding of other humans.

2. More lodges, café, hotels along the roads

Moving toward 2030 means taking risks, by finally putting some resources to
work. Namibians love their road side farms, they love seeing them there relatively
empty. 2030 means making use of our land, the land trapped in our so called
farms. People want to take a rest and drink a cool drink between towns, but
no one want to do that in the heartiness of a hot day beside a fence of another
empty farm. Hence people are forced to push on just a little further to reach the
next town before they faint.
Yet not everyone is stable enough to ride a hot energy dropping day, people get
too exhausted and drained by the long hot road, likely ending in road accidents.
Such kind of sensitive data are stuck with Namibia and are available for the
world to see, this will install fear into the tourist who wants to visit Namibia.

Yes, we can extend our roads and make them dual carriage freeways but chances
are it will not minimize the accidents on the roads, plus how many decades can
we wait before we have concrete finance to fund such projects? What we need
is more stopping place along our road, the reduction of long driving hours in a
hot arid country.
We can start by building resting lodges, restaurants along our roads and adding
more stopping opportunities on the road. This will not only reduce accidents, but
also put fun in travelling, because this will also give travellers any opportunity
to inspect their cars, rest, take photos and interact with other travellers.

Olebby Brothers roadside rest lodge

Wana & daughters road-thriller café

It is time to transform our long farms into something that has benefit to it, or
we can move their fences a kilometre inland away from the road to provide land
for development. These are project that ecotourist are willing to fund and put
their money on.
Most people make their memorable moments on the road, so let give them the
essence to achieve these memories on our roads. This entirely will not only
benefit tourists but also bring a liveliness in our own lives, we have to make our
own country a place to stay forever.
This will require determination of all citizens, rich and poor to establish such
kind of beauty. We can form mutual partnership between those with capitals,
those with the ideas and those with the recipe. Our government has to full
support the locals in this section by aiding with funds, connections and putting
these places onto the maps.
The only way to move money around the country is through these kind of
projects. To reach 2030 living the dream, we have to move economic growth
away from towns and scatter them along the country. There is no better way to
deal with urbanization rather than moving the city to the villages.
Achieving vision 2030 does not mean having the whole population accommodated
in the city, but having people with access to electricity, clean water and quality
food where ever they find themselves. Education is often blamed as the missed
bigshot to development and employment but onething we all very reach with
is traditional knowledge, the passion and great common sense.
We do not need excessive education to guide tourist, to help other communities
or to build lodges and communities centres. Working together is already
knowledge, our passion will drive our designs and common sense will keep the
operation running.

3. Cast diamonds upon our beaches

Swakopmund is one of the town that receive magnitude of visitors in the

country, the town is favoured for its aesthetical designs and its access to the
atlantic ocean. Swakopmund with its potentiality can become our next African
Bahamas. Yet achieving this is not a question of how but when, when will we
start to clean our beaches, renovate them and regular attend to them. The
Bahamas were not devolped in one day. It took years of refining, hard work and
planning to build the most luxurious backyard of holiday islands.
Ecotourists, governments, contractors and architectures all worked together
to establish these holiday destinations. The essence of working together was
again demonstrated to have made things possible. All sectors in Namibia, the
private, public and the state are required to act together and assist each others
were needed to transform our beaches into tourism destinations.
To have our own Namibian Bahamas, we can start by coming together and plan
as a nation. The greater motivation we can give ourselves is by planning the
renovation together, through all the phases. People do not vandalize what they
have worked hard for, they take care of it.
The private sectors can assist with funding and promoting our beaches on global
scales, the government can continue to strengthen cleaning and maintenance
while the public can host annual festival to attract magnitude of people across
the world.
 Ecotourism: environmental, social and
economic impacts
Adopted from Kiper 2013: Role of ecotourism in sustainable development.

Ecotourism entails a combination of conservation and tourism (the economics

related with it) to benefit local communities, especially focusing on sustainability
(Myburgh & Saayman 2002).
Natural and cultural landscape values form a basis for ecotourism. These values
are geographical position, microclimatic conditions, existence of water, natural
beauties, existence of natural vegetation, existence of wildlife, surface features,
geomorphologic structure, local food, festivals and pageants, traditional
agricultural structure, local handicrafts, regional dress culture, historical events
and people, heritage appeals, architectural variety, traditional music and folk
dance, artistic activities and so on.
Ecotourism operates for one or more of the eco-friendly alternatives for the
economic use of natural resources compared with mining, hunting, farming
and so on (Li, 2006). Ecotourism promotes an enhanced appreciation of natural
environments and environmental education by exposing visitors and locals to
nature and conservation (Bob et al., 2008).
Ecotourism is largely perceived to safeguard natural areas and thereby to
contribute to the conservation of biodiversity. It focuses primarily on experiencing
and learning about nature, its landscape, flora, fauna and their habitats, as well
as cultural artefacts from the locality. In ecotourism planning the first issue that
emerges is the environment and its conservation.
An ecotourism destination must in no way be developed without planning in
terms of environmental concern (Rahman, 2010).
Within the ecotourism implementation existence of water resources creates
advantages in terms of both visuality and utilization. Climatic features of a
region influence tourism directly and indirectly and play a crucial role in the
development of tourism. Plants drawing interest thanks to their size, age or
appearance are other appealing components of ecotourism. Flowering plants
are important resources in ecotourism. Historical, natural and folkloric values
are important sources for ecotourism.
According to Soykan, traditional commercial products are one of the most
significant appeals leading to development of ecotourism in a region. This is
because whole production process from planting to harvest and processing
bear cultural differences, and most of them are performed in traditional ways
(Kiper, 2011).
Ecotourism has the potential to seriously impact local communities, largely due
to the tendency of ecotourists to have a greater interest in the culture and nature
of the areas they visit, as compared to mass tourists (McMinn, 1997).
Ecotourism destinations are always environmentally sensitive because
ecotourism activities directly involve various environmental phenomena
including bird watching, trekking, mountaineering, horse riding and elephant
riding within the forest wilderness trail, staying in natural caves, studying about
flora and fauna, simple bush walking, fishing, animal behaviour study, ecological
studies (Rahman,2010).
Ecotourism always incorporates various activities in nature (hiking, mountain
climbing, observing the living beings in their natural habitat, etc.), but it
may include cultural activities, too. Ecotourism is an important educational
component, it is a chance to learn respect for nature, for the local culture, and
for some it is a chance to self-reflection being inspired by the beauty of the
surroundings.
 Conclusion
Ecotourism is a good approach for supporting conservation and providing
income for communities. It can contribute to economic development and local
employment. The implementation of ecotourism can moderate the dependence
of communities from the government. Ecotourism also able the use of indigenous
knowledge of locals in the management of natural resources, inculcating a sense
of community ownership.
Ecotourism is the development tool that Namibia should implement toward
achieving the outspoken 2030. Ecotourism promote the interaction of local
communities with environmental organisations that can help in the management,
funding and in building strategies that will increase economic return. Ecotourism
is also an educational approach to sustainability and conservation of natural
resources.
If carefully adopted in Africa, ecotourism will be the strategical approach to
decrease poverty and urban migration. It is important for African governments to
start introducing this conceptual approach at early stages of economic difficulty
and monitor its effectiveness. Labelling our country with ecotourism is both a
good economical and conservational example that we can offer other African
countries who are failing to stabilize better living condition of their people.
Hence the implementation of ecotourism will increase tourism activities in our
country and ensure local participation in the process of development. It will
also build association between government bodies and local communities. Case
studies and more research are needed to ensure that ecotourism practice will
not pose danger to our environment or bring conflict of ownership.
This paper therefore offers a small portion of information to we need to draw
our attention on strategic development and provide you with thoughtful insights
about this concept ecotourism.
Author details
Vilho Kanyiki
University of Namibia, faculty of Agriculture and natural resources, fisheries
and aquatic science department. Namibia

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