Prof. Benjamin Okaba, Global President of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) has called for special initiatives to boost creative tourism across Africa.
Okaba made the call in his speech titled “Creative Tourism for Local Economies in African States” at the FESTAC AFRICA RENAISSANCE festival, currently holding in Accra, Ghana.
He said that Africa’s rich traditions and modern creativity like the Bollywood, Afrobeats and Fashion should be leveraged on to explore how creative tourism could transform local economies across the African continent.
According to him, Reconceptualising creative tourism in the African context is an indicator of overall shift away from mass tourism paradigms.
“It moves beyond even passive observation to provide immersion in the cultural, creative and traditional activities of host communities.
“In an African context, creative tourism is based on our greatest asset that is our cultural heritage and we have abundant ancient traditions, rich art forms, and original craftsmanship among others”.
Okaba said that in view of this, it was therefore expedient that stakeholders, government institutions, private operators, museums and cultural institutions, and local communities implement special initiatives for the creative industry.
He added that the industry would focus on building creative tourism as a tool of local development.
He also called on policy makers to implement the ECOWAS ECOTOUR policy with special considerations for community-managed creative tourism initiatives, as well as simplify cross-border movement formalities for cultural exchange with sufficient security arrangements.
According to him the private sector operators should create balanced partnership formulas that provide reasonable returns from the development of tourism back to the people.
“Invest in training programmes that build hospitality skills as well as cultural conservation knowledge.
“For cultural institutions, record and protect traditional knowledge and practice and modify it for responsible visitor experiences.
“Also design apprenticeship programmes for the transfer of skills to future generations.
“The local communities should be organised into cultural cooperatives and enterprises that can collaboratively develop and manage tourism experiences.”
The INC global president added that It was essential to uphold the values of truth, resilience, peace, and hospitality, while simultaneously rejecting violence and criminality.
“For the diaspora Africans, act as cultural ambassadors and pioneer visitors to creative tourism initiatives in your ancestral home towns. Provide skills, networks, and investment funds for such initiatives.
“As the Ijaw National Congress posits, ‘we are not victims; we are a resilient nation standing up to reclaim our future’.
“This mindset is equally applicable to all African people working hard to apply their heritage for economic empowerment through creative tourism.
“Through creative tourism, we are able to build economies that are prosperous yet true representations of our cultural heritage. We are capable of building possibilities for our young people to build their futures back home instead of resorting to the dangerous migration.
“Additionally, we are capable of showcasing the diversity of African cultures on our own conditions.
“Let us cooperate in the development of a vibrant creative tourism system throughout Africa; a system that generates sustainable livelihoods, safeguards our cultural heritage, and reveals the richness of our societies to the global masses.
“Let our combined work lead to the flourishing and cultural renaissance of societies throughout our grand continent,” Okaba added.