By Walter Wilson Nana
Several weeks after the Ministry of Tourism and Leisure, MINTOURL, trained tourist operators in the Southwest Region on improving the quality of services rendered to clientele, it recently organised training for Mayors of the Region.
Officials of MINTOURL, led by the Minister, Bello Bouba Maigari, were in Buea to train Mayors of the Region on the setting up of tourism boards at council and inter-council levels.
The Mayors of the Southwest were being trained after those of the Centre, West, Littoral, South, Adamawa and Northern regions.
Minister of Tourism & Leisure, Bello Bouba Maigari at the workshop
These trainings, according to Minister Bello Bouba, are aimed at developing sustainable tourism at local level in view of improving on the living standard of local populations. “Tourism is an income generating activity, so, it must be given serious considerations. It has direct and indirect job opportunities. It’s a development alternative for all the Regions in the country,” Bello Bouba added.
Mayors and other local authorities are expected to play leading roles in creating council and inter-council tourism boards, write projects and galvanise the population to contribute to the development of tourism in their areas.
Recently, Government has been seen to be multiplying efforts at boosting tourism after decades of apparent neglect of the country’s huge tourism potentials. Lack of access roads to touristic sites, poor infrastructures and services to tourists, and lack of effective government policy on tourism have largely been blamed for the country’s untapped resources. “The government is now on a campaign to develop new strategies that will boost the sector across the country. The ongoing seminars are for us to share, learn and dispatch knowledge on tourism,” he noted.
While addressing participants at the three-day seminar, Bello Bouba said tourism is a source of wealth and that it is one of the main income-generating sectors. “The positive impact of tourism on the economy helps to boost growth, revive the economy and alleviate poverty by creating opportunities for the less privileged groups notably the women, the youths and local populations to make money for themselves,” the Minister said.
Regional authorities, tourism stakeholders pose for a family picture with Bello Bouba in agbada
Bello Bouba said, the Government of Cameroon has decided to develop it, and make it a powerful tool to boost national economy by adopting in 2005 a new strategy to revamp the tourist sector. “We’ve to adequately prepare all the stakeholders in the tourism chain on the importance of that department. We have to see and acknowledge the potentials of the touristic sites across the Regions in Cameroon. Let’s explore all the ideas we are discussing in the seminars,” he said.
Buea Mayor and the Regional Representative of Mayors, Charles Mbella Moki, conceded that it is only recently that government has given greater attention to tourism. He said it is of late that the government has become more aware and is putting in place structures and the legal framework to prod those engaged in the development of tourism. “We are taking advantage of this because, as the Minister said, the time is now, the challenge is ours and the moment is to our advantage”.
According to Mbella Moki, as council authorities, it is their duty to build partnerships, and mobilise the local community to participate in the development of tourism.
While talking about the relevance of the training, Southwest Regional Delegate of Tourism and Leisure, Peter Pel Elangwe, said the capacity building is aimed at equipping Mayors on how to create tourism boards.
“These boards are important because they shall serve as tools for educating tourists, letting them know the local areas to visit, what is available and how to get to various sites,” the Delegate said.
Prospects
Besides building tourism boards, the Southwest Tourism boss said they are training Mayors to be able to write projects because “at the local level, they are able to identify sites, which can be developed. If this is booming at the local level, therefore more money will be coming to the councils which will go a long way to sustain the local areas”.
Also on hand to propose ways to boost Cameroon’s tourism, was a team that got audience with the MINTOURL boss. The team, led by Barrister Valentine Bate, handed a proposal by US based Dr. William Jong-Ebot to Bello Bouba. Under the banner of the Alpha Marketing and Management Group Inc, Jong-Ebot hopes to sell the country’s tourism potentials world wide. Among other things, they are proposing to carry out studies on tourist attractions, restaurants, the number, quantity and cost of lodging facilities.
In spite of the apparent neglect of this economy booster, there are prospects that the country’s tourism will compete to take the driver’s seat on the continent. Already, according to the MINTOURL boss, in 2010, Cameroon got the status of a tourist destination following the criteria set by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, UNWTO, for having received about 572,000 tourists and more than 670,000 in 2011. It is ostensibly due to this and the important role tourism plays in boosting the economy and alleviating poverty that government is taking steps to invest in the sector.
