Table of Contents
After encouraging the book club I’m in with some of my close friends to read the book Africa is Not a Country by Dipo Faloyin, I knew I would want to write a post on why I think African countries deserve better representation in global tourism. I just didn’t know how long it would take me to actually write it. There have been several drafts. And I mean several. Because when it comes to African countries, the motherland, the feeder, the giver to the rest of the world. I know I would get way too passionate about it.
I wanted to give Africa the love and respect that it most certainly deserves. So after my changes asking family and friends to review I am here to answer with my views why I generally believe African countries deserve better representation in global tourism and why, and how we can all help that happen.
After travelling to 15 African countries, with more to come, I feel like I have first-hand insight from my travels and living on the continent, to speak deeply enough on this topic with the upmost respect and gratitude for a continent that has often been downplayed, pushed to the side.
But first, let’s pause and be honest. Just for a second. If I asked you ‘What do you think of when you are asked about Africa?’ What springs to mind for you?
Ask most people to picture Africa today, and a handful of people will have the view that its just one country, some may even have very distorted images flash through their minds: savannah grasslands, wildlife safaris, maybe a pyramid or two. Oh and some blue waters for Zanzibar in Tanzania and can’t forget about Detty December. It’s not a bad thing, but it is very clear that when people think about Africa (minus the poverty, flies, huts) that’s as far as it goes, which for me is a real problem. While there are safaris, blue waters in Zanzibar and the parties for Detty December I can’t help but wish that people would see the true essence of Africa.
Today I hit submit and I discuss with you the reason why the whole of Africa the many African countries (because they are many) deserve better tourism, better light from not just the people that look like me but from the world globally.
Related post: Why Should We Stop Saying We’re Travelling to Africa?
What is Africa?
Africa is a continent of 54 countries although the African Union does say 55, with over a billion people, and more linguistic and cultural diversity than any other landmass on Earth. Yet in travel media, guidebooks, and bucket-list culture, it tends to be treated as a single, interchangeable destination that people shouldn’t go too.
Africa is often seen as a backdrop for wildlife with backwards mentality rather than a place where complex, layered civilisations, humaniritian issues have thrived for millennia.
That is a problem not just for perception, but for real economies and real people that want to move on from the historical derailment the continent has received.
African Tourism Today
African tourism is so interesting. Despite making it a continent that I want to see and travel through it still compared to other continents only receives around 5% of global tourist arrivals around the world. And the figures get worst according to World Population Review, Africa represent roughly 17% of the world’s population.
To some degree it makes sense because the infrasture is pretty limitied when it comes to global tourism in Africa, but when it comes to tourism in Africa the distribution is wildly uneven, with people going to mainly Egypt, Morocco, South Africa or Nigeria, Ghana (for Detty December) and maybe a handful of East African nations that pull the vast majority of visitors. And while I have been to all of these countries there are still many other equally compelling countries that we can all visit and explore like Ethiopia, Benin, Mozambique, Zambia. These countries unfortunately, remain largely off the radar for people across the globe and to many international travellers.
This isn’t just about bragging rights. Today tourism in Africa is one of the most accessible pathways to economic growth for what we term as ‘developing nations’. We know that any form of tourism generates jobs, sustains local businesses, and can fund the preservation of cultural sites that might otherwise be lost through historical warfare. However, when the tourist gaze narrows to a few destinations, the benefits stay pretty concentrate, and the rest are left on the outside.
“The continent is not a country. It is not a genre. It is not a single safari waiting to happen. It is 54 distinct nations with their own cuisines, music, architecture, fashion, and ways of being in the world.”
What we’re missing
I’ll be honest: before I started researching travel in any part of Africa, I couldn’t have named the capital of Benin. I also never really understood why some countries spoke English, French, Portuguese and others didn’t. I questioned it for sure but I didn’t get why? And that’s on me, I know.
But it’s also a product of the real history not being taught in school or how the travel media ecosystem doesn’t show the realities of the history or because we Africa is simply not a continent that has the same attention, aesthetics, or editorial budgets to lesser-known African destinations that it gives other places around the world like Lisbon or Kyoto. What we’re missing is staggering and pretty astonishing.
The depth, variety and everyday experiences people have is just sadly not there. It’s therefore no surprise to know that in this modern world with social media that there are still entire cities, cuisines, and cultures that exist beyond the narrow lens that is often presented.
The role of the travel industry on African countries
As I mentioned previously Africa real dilema is the lack of key infrastructure letting it down. For some destinations there isn’t the hotels, transport links, or visa processing ease that make travel life easier for the average tourist. And don’t get me started on being a solo traveller that wants to explore more African countries. Before I did more of Africa I travelled to the continent with at least two travel companies before I could feel confident enough to travel it on my own. And while many countries on the continent are getting the spotlight it deserves there is still a significant part of it that falls down to perception.
The perception is something the travel industry has always had the power to shape.
Travel publications, tour operators, and content creators like myself as well as influencers make choices every single day about which destinations to spotlight and travel tooo. And as much as I can I try to showcase African countries to my community, many people may see as a negative because I’m not doing the usual spaces that the masses want to see on their feeds. Maybe that means I don’t get the coverage or limelight that I should.
But for me it’s important to showcase African countries that are not always explored, because I think we can agree that when Africa does get coverage, it often follows under the same pattern where the same narratives is reinforced of poverty, people already believe.
That cycle doesn’t break on its own. It requires intention from me and you. More diverse storytelling, investment in destinations that are not already overexposed to the travel industry.
I hope I can continue to show Africa in its full complexity and not just in ways that feel familiar or comfortable to a global audience because Africa as a whole deserves all the credibility it can get and if I am one of the few creators that’s going to show case this to my audience so be it.
What I’ve experienced travelling across Africa
What I’ve experienced travelling across African countries has been completely different from the narratives I grew up seeing. I think I mentioned before that I growing up I never understood the magnitude of the history that African countries have faced. And with African countries I have mostly seen the poor child that hasn’t eaten for months, the huts for houses and the actual discourse of just being and living in Africa. The endless charity cases but again for me Africa hasn’t just been about what I’ve been told, taught or seen online on an advert.
Theres so much more. For me it’s been the welcomeness and warmth of young children at an orphan village I visited in Uganda. Going and doing a cooking class in Rwanda, South Africa or even Morocco and even travelling three hours to the boarders of Togo and dipping into the the most beautiful waterfalls I’ve seen in my entire life.
All these moments has stayed with me deep in my heart. Every moment that doesn’t always make it into travel content, but stay with you long after you leave. And that’s exactly why African countries deserves better representation in global tourism because it really does matter.
The impact of poor representation in African Countries
When African countries are reduced to a single narrative, the impact goes far beyond perception. It affects where people choose to travel. The economy and how money flows and it affects which destinations grow and which ones are overlooked.
And ultimately, it affects the lives of real people. African tourism and any form of tourism around the world is not just about our own individual experiences. It’s about livelihoods, the opportunities to connect with people and local communities and most importantly being able to benefit from what already exists within their countries.
So what I can do and what you can do
So how can I go to Africa for real then? Now don’t jump ship because I’m not saying you can only travel to Africa. None of what I have said or written today means you shouldn’t and can’t visit the Serengeti or Marrakech. In fact I’m a firm believer that you should go exactly where you want, when you want and you shouldn’t have to explain yourself to anyone on what you do with your life either. Despite all the current geopolitically issues that are currently ongoing as I write and you read this the world is actually incredible to explore and visit when and where you can.
However, I do also think that we as travellers do need to start thinking about travelling to Africa as a luxury, food and fun destinations because it is. And if you have raised eyebrows reading this then I have to ask you a hard question:
Why don’t you want to visit African countries?
Final Views on African Countries Deserve Better Representation in Global Tourism Still
To close this because if I don’t I will be going on forever and ever. But again, do African countries deserve better representation in global tourism? Yes and yes and yes again.
Africa deserves and needs to be seen properly for what it truly is which is an amazing continent filled with so much depth and history. I hope this piece has shown you that one Africa is not a single place. It is certainly a country it has many identies, languages, weathers, flags, cultures, foods and the list goes on.
What do you think? Do you believe African countries deserve better representation in global tourism? Let’s meet in the comments.
