Nomad Africa - December 2017

Ecotourism is everywhere lately, but have you ever stopped to think about why it is important? Simply put, ecotourism is important for two reasons. It creates effective economic incentives for the conservation of both biological and cultural diversity and heritage, while at the same time empowering communities to fight poverty with economic development and work toward sustainable development locally, regionally and nationally.
In this edition, Christine Siamanta wrote a very touching story about the ancient cultural practice of female genital mutilation in Kenya, East Africa (see “Wounds that won’t heal”, Page 28). In Uganda, another part of East Africa, one of our expert contributors; Rebecca Rwakabukoza, wrote an interesting piece on how the country can improve on its tourism offerings to attract Chinese tourists.
Humans are the biggest threat to wildlife in any region of the world (see page 95). But human encroachment on habitats and migration routes is not the only way we are facing off with wildlife. Humans are also actively wiping out iconic species like the elephant, lion and rhino by turning them into commodities. It is therefore our ultimate responsibility to protect threatened species and continue to educate local audiences on the real cost of ivory and rhino horn while debunking the social and cultural values behind their use in a modern world.
At Nomad Africa, conservation is at the core of our corporate social responsibility. We will continuously use our unique media platforms to educate our audience on this very important subject. Conservation is about everything we do and when we say that, we really do mean it and are not just “Greenwashing”