PBS series puts Tanzania in the spotlight: Travel Weekly

Tanzania’s pioneering president wants to change perceptions of her country

During the shooting of “The Royal Tour: Tanzania,” Travel Weekly editor in chief Arnie Weissmann had the opportunity to sit down with Tanzania president Samia Suluhu Hassan for an interview. Here’s a portion of their conversation:

Arnie Weissmann: How has the pandemic impacted tourism arrivals in Tanzania?

President Samia Suluhu Hassan: Tourism contributed about 4% of the country’s GDP in 2019. Since then, it has gone down to 1%. We’re trying to revive the sector. We’ve been seeing the beginnings of a revival, but it hasn’t come back to normal. We don’t predict it will return to normal levels until 2025.

One thing that has resulted from the pandemic is that people want to go outdoors more, into the fresh air. We believe that may bring a good number of tourists here.

We want more tourists. And we’d like them to be vaccinated. [Note: In addition to a vaccination requirement, all visitors are tested for Covid at the airport upon arrival.]

Weissmann: What are your expectations for “The Royal Tour”?

Hassan: When you say “Tanzania” to the outside world, most people don’t even know where it is. We have so many attractions that tourists would enjoy that aren’t known to the world. We have political stability and security here, something that is also not widely known to the world.

I get annoyed with some media, which may focus on something negative that once happened and keep showing it over and over, leading some people to think Tanzania is a chaotic country. But it’s not true. We wanted to do “The Royal Tour” so that the world can have a chance to know where is Tanzania, what is in Tanzania, who Tanzanians are and what they can expect when they come here.

Weissmann: How important is the American market to Tanzania tourism?

Hassan: It’s very important, but like others, most Americans don’t really know Tanzania. Once they know what’s available, they will come; they’ll begin to ask travel agents and tour operators.

Weissmann: Many Americans are aware that poaching is a problem that many African countries face. You say you have been successful in reducing it in Tanzania. What’s your approach?

Hassan: We work with the villagers. We’ve had a massive education program, showing them films, and they tell us where the poachers are operating and work with game rangers and the police. We also have support from Americans and the British, who supply us with technology to track the animals, especially the elephants. Poaching came down slowly at first, but now we’ve reduced it to a small percentage of what it was.

Weissmann: There is a controversial plan to put a cable car up a portion of Mount Kilimanjaro, along what is now a very popular climbing route. It’s thought this may increase pressure on other routes. What’s the status of that project?

Hassan: It is under consideration. There are environmental issues and technical issues. I would like to see a cable car there. Many people would like to go up there without climbing. I have seen it work in many other places.

Weissmann: Can a country that is still a developing country make sustainability a priority? 

Hassan: The beauty of Tanzania is in its forests, its lakes, its coastline. Protecting our environment is our priority. Forty-four percent of our country is in national parks.

Weissmann: Many places that have such a large portion of their countries protected in national parks find that these areas can come under pressure from farmers encroaching on reserves. Is that a problem here? If so, how do you address it?

Hassan: We’ve had problems. We started an education campaign on conservation. We found that the problem is that, every year, the farmers want more land. Every year, more and more. So, our approach is to work with them to increase the yield on the land they have rather than just giving them more land.

Weissmann: Some of the places that you’ve gone on “The Royal Tour” are not particularly well-known. What are some other less well-known attractions you’d like potential visitors to know about?

Hassan: Near the city of Mbeya, one can see one of the largest meteorites ever found, sticking out of the ground. And there are hot springs in a few places, the Amboni caves and Kikuletwa Hot Springs. And, there are the Kondoa Irangi rock paintings [a Unesco World Heritage Site].

Weissmann: You’ve been in office for less than a year. What’s your vision? What do you hope to have accomplished by the time you’re up for re-election in 2025?

Hassan: In the short term, a broad Covid recovery. That will take time. The economy is now growing at about 4%. By 2025, I hope it will be 7% to 8%.

My hope is not only for economic growth but also for human growth, growth out of poverty, to have clean water, to have children go to school. That’s my vision.