A CHAT FROM LONDON: Much more than an ‘Informer East Africa’ London forum

Have you ever attended conferences where there were too many speakers? But out of it, something unique stood out. It does not matter how many spoke or played music.

When I was invited to last Saturday’s media forum at London’s Africa Centre in the southern part of the city, I expected the usual stuff. This was a second meeting. Last year’s was mostly about what Informer East Africa newspaper is about. Being one of its correspondents (i.e. furnishing articles on Tanzania), what more to expect? Chief editor Julius Mbaluto introduced us reporters, explained how the paper had become the voice of East Africans. The veteran broadcaster and journalist (London ITV, Kenya’s KBC, BBC) gingerly handled each speaker – and there were many.

“Contribution to the world matters a lot,” Mbaluto said. A man aware of human destiny.

How do you contribute to our world? In the old days of Africa, it was about having loads of children. Leave your mark as an ancestor. Not bad. Not bad...

Oh yeah, on December 2, 2017...

Everything was significant. Voice of East Africans.

East African, our land.

But what impressed me personally was the angle of tourism. Not just as a trade but its harrowing, meandering significance. Plus, the slaughter of our animals.

Two speakers educated and informed us – first about the tourist trade. Tobias Nyumba gave some amazing statistics on how Kenya and Tanzania hold the Big Five and therefore, best, in wildlife. Rhinos, lions, elephants, cheetahs and buffaloes.

(I should add giraffes, but, Shhshsh, don’t tell anyone).

Mr Nyumba said the best thing about our countries being the beacon of tourism was having good conservation policies, which had made tourism prosper. An increase in revenue of 6.4 per cent, which is contributing to national incomes on top of indirect benefits – jobs for locals, expansion of towns, schools, etc. He cited women being indirect beneficiaries (having on the side trade links) of tourism. Kenya and Tanzania are ahead of other African countries, he emphasized.

Mr Nyumba, cited problems that need solving, including adequate transport and accommodation especially for personnel such as tour guides and drivers.

Potential was the word that kept leaping from his lips.

How about Diasporans?

How do we involve those famous blacks overseas keen to rediscover their roots? There is a small clip circulating on WhatsApp. Thierry Henry is trying to read Swahili – “Mahindi choma...”, “Piga mpira kwa kichwa”... Kichwa is pronounced “kishwa” (French style). Henry is looking forward to visiting Kenya. Is this the kind of stuff Mr Nyumba meant?

And there was another tourism angle.

A Kenyan, Mr Jim Jusus Nyamu, has lived and been almost everywhere across Africa, including Tanzania. During a private conversation he told me he knew Kilimanjaro and even the difference between Marangu and Kiboriloni.

Nyamu’s speech was really significant.

“When tourists come, they want to see animals, not people...”

Big point.

Tourism means money; means resources; means making a living.

So?

The killing of elephants; slaughter of rhinos is ugly. China has stopped buying poached products. It is the US and UK that are buying ivory and other trophies.

Chad has no more rhinos.

There used to be a million elephants. Now only a quarter of that are in existence. Zimbabwe has 67,000; Kenya has 22,000; Tanzania had 140,000 elephants four years ago. They have slumped to 43,000!

Part of the problem is ignorance about animals among us Africans, Mr Nyamu, who is leading an international walk to save elephants, declared.

“Ivory Belongs to Elephants” was the slogan of the night. Nyamu and his team of well-dressed wild life conservationists were here to educate us.

Nyamu: “God created wild animals before man...”

We should respect these animals.

Tusks are found on living elephants while ivory are the same organs when taken to be sold or used by us humans.

“We want to remove ignorance in the minds of many people...” and hence these international walks. “The killing of elephants should stop. The evil person is not the one killing the elephants but the one wearing the ivory.”