The Engen-sponsored Heidelberg Xairu Blue Crane Route, launched on January 24, brings to 43 the number of tourism routes established by communities across Africa. The significance of this self-empowerment initiative is that it gives grassroots people access to the growth potential of the tourism industry.
Already these 43 tourism routes have been documented and mapped with GPS coordinates and loaded on to www.africandream.org for access by potential tourists. These routes cover 23 865km in 11 countries, involving 86 towns and 997 establishments that account for 6 527 direct, full-time jobs in season and 2 750 part-time.
This feat has been achieved through the vision, development framework and support of Open Africa, a non- profit organisation that inspires the development of tourism routes throughout Africa, which optimise the synergies between tourism, job creation and conservation.
The founding sponsor and operational sponsor of Open Africa is Engen, which has lauded the new route.
“Africa has only 2% share of the tourism market, but there is huge potential as nature-based tourism, which includes ecotourism, is the fastest-growing segment of tourism,” says Lungile Dumse, Engen head of corporate affairs. “A 2% market share accounts for 16,5-million jobs on the continent. Imagine if this market share increased to 10% — what it would do for employment in Africa.”
“It’s tourism by the people for the people,” adds Carol Purnell, Open Africa facilitator of this latest route.
The Heidelberg Xairu Blue Crane Route, named from the San word xairu, meaning paradise, includes the easternmost area of the Overberg, from Zuurbraak to the mountains beyond Grootvadersbosch, through the spectacular hills and valleys surrounding Heidelberg to Die Vlakte and then down to Witsand.
The Blue Crane phenomenon is relatively new to the region, drawn by the area’s wheat fields and short grasslands. Vicky Hudson, the field officer who is the driving force behind the project on behalf of the Overberg Crane Group, highlights the potential threat to the Blue Crane population.
“The heart of the problem lies in that the birds are, by and large, sharing agricultural land and some farmers consider them as little more than pests taking the food meant for livestock with a real economic value. Highlighting their tourism value gives the Blue Crane economic importance to the region and ensures their protection and symbolic landmark value to the region as well,” says Hudson.
With the help of Open Africa’s website, tourists will be able to access the Heidelberg Xairu Blue Crane Route from anywhere in the world to plan their itinerary in the finest detail — even where they will sleep and who will welcome them.