Sustainable Cultural Tourism Development towards Poverty alleviation through Heritage Conservation Trails in western Uganda By Raymond Katebaka African Union of Conservationists (AUC), Makerere University P.O.Box 5068 Kampala Uganda.

The 15 th International Conference of National Trusts ( I N T O ), Imperial Golf View Hotel, Entebbe, Uganda 30 th Sept. - 4 th Oct. 2013

Together with AUC can advocate & promote conservation of Africa’s common future by: Clear harmonized legal policies practiced in sectoral institutional frameworks under governments Improved knowledge for the generation to conserve Information flow Economics Engineering Culture is still important in conservation Ethics Fostering Political will Enable capacity building in research and technological innovations, environmental education Collaboration & mentorship Environment

UGANDA A map of World Heritage Sites in Africa by state party, each designated by a dot no sites 1-2 sites 3-4 sites 5-6 sites 7+ sites

Source

: UNESCO have designated 129 World Heritage Sites in Africa . These sites are located in 37 countries

UGANDA

MUBENDE

3

KAMULI

3 3

MBALE Kampala

Lake Victoria

5

SUBA BOMET

5 KENYA

Nairobi

TANZANIA

INDIAN OCEAN KILOSA

4

MGETA

3 3

BWAKIRA Dar es Salaam

MALAWI

Lilongwe

Lake Malawi

6

DEDZA

Lake Chilwa

Attractiveness of Heritage Conservation Tourism Trails (HCTT) location

• • • 2 World UNESCO Heritage sites along the HCTT Globally recognised under several classification schemes – One of WWF’s ecoregions – – Part of the Eastern Afromontane biodiversity ‘Hotspot’ (Conservation International) An endemic bird area (Birdlife International) Compilation of species lists from around the World show how important this area is for global conservation

Sustainable Cultural Tourism Development (SCTD

) SCTD in W. Uganda is endowed with abundant unique natural resources e.g. biodiversity distributed along the proposed trail

Heritage sites in W. Uganda

•

3 World UNESCO heritage sites & include:

1. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park 2. Rwenzori Mts National Park 3. Kasubi Tombs

<-Semuliki National Park <-Queen Elizabeth National Park <-Kigezi Wildlife Reserve

• • • •

Industries surrounding HCTT

Tourism related – Hotels and concessions (lodges within the protected areas) – Professional guiding services – Educational centers with gift shops Currently Petroleum Exploration Mining (Hima Cement, Kilembe Mines) Hydropower plants coming up

• • •

HCTT focus and business development in W. Uganda

HCTT is a Pro-Poor Tourism (PPT) that increases the net benefits to poor people & their participation in managing tourism products.

Need to maintain a balance between development and conservation of the unique heritage in the major touristic areas which are a huge asset Main concerns are that if Uganda invested the same amounts in tourism as in oil mining what might Uganda generate in revenue? E.g. Heritage tourism

The potential: Gorilla trekking Common practice

Spatial coverage of the HCTT

Changes in Human settlement along the HCTT

• • • Massive increase in settlement and agriculture around the HCTT thus poverty. Plotted all houses within 2km of trail in 1954 and 2006 – – 29,867 buildings ~179,200 people Migration corridors severed between Mgahinga -Rwenzoris and Queen Elizabeth and Kibale Parks

Batwa Bamba Batooro Bakonjo Banyaruguru QENP Kalinzu, Maramagambo, Kasyoha-kitomi CFR’s Banyabutumbi UNESCO site UNESCO site

L. Mulehe

Batwa, Bafumbira, Bakiga cultures

L. Bunyonyi

Rwenzori Mts Ranging from Ice at 5,100 metres (16,100 ft

)

Spectacular scenery

The landscape interaction in Bwindi IFNP

Current Challenges of Heritage Areas in western Uganda

• • • • •

Heritage conservation in Uganda

Western Uganda is reach in cultural diversity heritage resources.

Data available shows that predominant tribes endowed with culture: – – Bakiga, Bafumbira, Banyabutumbi, Bakonjo, Batwa (pygmies) across the entire trail in

<-Semuliki National Park

L. Bunyonyi, L. Mulehe, L. Mutanda, in the south of the trails L. Edward, L. Goerge, Kazinga channel, crater lakes in the mid west of the HCTT Two World Heritage Sites – Rwenzori and Bwindi One Man and Biosphere Reserve – Queen Elizabeth One Ramsar site – Lake George/Queen Elizabeth

Existing efforts of Heritage conservation in Uganda

• • The HCTT has 4 NPs, 2 are world UNESCO heritage site Indigenous Culture and Cultural Diversity Recreation and Tourism • Research and Education All these conserved areas are important for economic growth in terms of foreign exchange (tourism)

Heritage Trail sections global attraction for tourists in Uganda

Uganda’s largest Foreign Currency Earner $500 million in FY 2007/08

Challenges

• Conflicting Resource Use TOURISM wildlife and revenues is a major source of income for gov’t from management

• • • • • • • • •

Challenges heritage conservation in Uganda

No doubt that heritage & culture is pressed to meet the economic needs of the population in W. Uganda. But how ?

Hand to mouth local economy along HCTT Conservation considered as a cross sectoral activity Specific Policies and Laws Inadequate proper implementation Optimization of time spent by tourists in support of local & poor communities A comprehensive handling of proper funding not well calculated Cultural diversity resource Structural benefit sharing from existing business enterprises

Development priorities focus in Uganda

While oil is important for Uganda future, biodiversity and heritage tourism is a longer term and sustainable prospect for bringing in money to the country – need to be balanced

Challenges …..

• • • • • • • • Poor information flow Several stakeholders with differing interests and priorities Inadequate funds and overdependence on ……. Exclusive representation Lack of capacity in conservation organizations to develop good projects/proposals Corruption, Lack of transparency and accountability Conservation benefits not direct

• • • •

What can be done!

Mainstreaming culture into tourism requires additional efforts, • Existing tools, guidelines & structures are difficult to apply, on addressing issues Difficulty to question relations within poor communities Issues are deeply embedded in social, political and cultural • • Culture & Heritage strategies specifically require a long term Can INTO push for integration of Heritage strategies into the proposed SDG’s to replace the MDG’s Contemporary understanding of process and approach

Ecotourism as alternate livelihood

In northern Tanzania

Valuing heritage

• There is a need to value heritage in terms of culture availability in Uganda. Some work done so far, indicate that cultural practice provided services to local people and the country worth about 0.1% of Uganda’s GDP in 2005.

• Participation enterprises then poverty impacts are likely in

batwa (pygymies

decisions & to be enhanced.

(Estimate that each practice by

) in Uganda is worth $13,500 per year in revenue

to Uganda poverty will be history).

Colin Tudge proposed in Global Ecology, 1991….& J. Buckerigde 2011 with 4Es

• •

Global Ecology 1991:

Knowledge & technique learned from the past, Economic & political systems address deep problems of Heritage conservation, • •

4Es 2011:

Morality and conflict: Who is important in heritage conservation? Can our ethics take us to the heritage conservation we want or maybe harbinger?

Thanks for Listening to me

AUC acknowledges CCFU and efforts by INTO to organise this 1 st and 15 th conference in Africa You’re welcome to support HCTT in W. Uganda Thank you