Making the most of nature-based tourism in Africa: Lessons from Rwanda

Rwanda is benefitting from nature-based tourism, but you might be wondering, what is nature-based tourism?

Nature-based tourism (also known as ecotourism) is a type of sustainable tourism that involves observing natural resources in their wild or undeveloped form. 

Popular nature-based tourism destinations include national parks, wildlife reserves, and pristine areas where visitors can appreciate and experience the natural world. Visitors are also educated about the natural and cultural environment and it offers opportunities for them to participate in conservation activities like wildlife monitoring or habitat restoration.

Nature-based tourism (NBT) has many benefits to offer, some of which are as follows:

1. It promotes biodiversity conservation
2. It helps reduce the negative impact of tourism on the natural and cultural environment
3. Through tourist visits, the local economy and livelihoods can be supported

Environmentally-conscious individuals have spurred the popularity of nature-based tourism activities, leading to a rise in tourist visits and increased economic growth.

A recent example of this is a report by the World Bank which revealed that investing in nature-based tourism has become crucial in driving economic growth in Rwanda. 

Rwanda’s three national parks (Volcanoes National Park, Akagera National Park, and Nyungwe National Park) generated approximately US$27.3 million in revenue in 2022. Even though many tourists have been shifting their gorilla-viewing exploits to Uganda, reports indicate that gorilla tourism in Rwanda generated US$107.3 million alone in 2019. 

Tourism has a high job multiplier effect on Rwanda’s economy. Tourism has multiple direct and indirect connections to employment-generating activities in other economic sectors (e.g., agriculture, hospitality, transportation, etc.). For every $1 million that nature-based tourism activities inject into the economy, an additional 1,328 new jobs are created.

These are spread across the transport, accommodation, and hospitality sector. SMEs and local business owners also benefit greatly from an influx of travellers to the area. 

“Rwanda’s Fields of Gold” | Yorkshire Tea

What lessons can we learn from Rwanda’s NBT?

First, Rwanda identified a demand for nature-based tourism and created a thriving market for it. Secondly, they capitalized on their existing vast natural resources to boost their tourism economy. Finally, they implemented conservation policies to protect their wildlife and forest reserves.

To borrow a leaf from Rwanda’s nature-based tourism playbook, we will need to familiarise ourselves with the prospects and challenges of nature-based tourism. 

• External factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic which significantly reduced the number of tourists and affected livelihoods can pose a threat to the economic potential of nature-based tourism. However, this can be mitigated by implementing a tourism resilience framework.
• Political factors such as private-public sector interests, investments and policy enforcement for sustainable biodiversity conservation play a role in enhancing or blighting NBT prospects.
• Climate change, landscape degradation and inadequate conservation efforts are other factors that affect nature-based tourism activities. 

Inadequate environmental conservation efforts have been an issue in many African countries, particularly in West Africa. Illegal poaching, deforestation and poor management of parks and reserves are just some of the challenges the sub-region faces.

However, there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. For instance, recently in Nigeria, the Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Bill of 2023 passed its first reading at the House of Reps. This legislation will increase penalties on crimes affecting endangered species and expand the courts’ ability to expedite wildlife cases and recover assets. 

Though there are still several stages before the bill becomes law, this is a positive sign that lawmakers are interested in doing their part to save the environment. Better funding and a focus on domestic tourism – primarily nature-based (and possibly, culture-based tourism) – will also equip natural and heritage sites to maintain a sustainable conservation strategy.

If this is implemented, Nigeria could be an ideal destination for nature-based tourism activities in the near future. Time will tell. 

Additional Resource:

Making the most of Nature-Based Tourism in Rwanda