Zambia’s untapped tourism potential & its prospects for a green economy

Zimbabwean scholar Shamiso Nyajeka makes a strong pitch for the development of a responsible, sustainable, and economically-inclusive travel & tourism industry in Zambia, where deep poverty persists despite a lucrative mining tradition.

It’s a “Good Tourism” Insight.

Nestled at the intersection of central, eastern, and southern Africa is a country known for its abundant high-grade copper reserves.

Accounting for about 6% of the world’s known copper resources, Zambia is a world-renowned producer and exporter of the versatile metal.

For centuries the people of Zambia have been trading in copper. Indeed the mining of copper, coal, cobalt, emeralds, and other subterranean treasures continues to be a driver and support for the Zambian economy, but not without leaving deep scars.

Despite exporting large volumes of copper each year, Zambia still has one of the highest levels of poverty in the world.

Ordinary Zambians have paid the most for mining’s narrow economic contributions. Spillages of harmful chemicals and emissions of toxic gases into the environment have compromised their communities’ health and that of their crops and livestock.

In the current era of Global Goals (the Sustainable Development Goals), ensuring sustainable development has become an important part of the Zambian government’s agenda. Yet it is quite clear that with an economy heavily dependent on copper mining, this is a mammoth task.

While agriculture is also an important sector of Zambia’s economy, it is increasingly under threat of climate change and volatile commodity prices. Moreover, realising agriculture’s full potential requires heavy investments in equipment, technologies, and chemicals, all of which present sustainability challenges.

Facing the challenges, the government has ... Continue reading this "GT" Insight in full and for free at https://goodtourismblog.com/2021/11/zambias-untapped-tourism-potential-its-prospects-for-a-green-economy/. There are many more "GT" Insights accessible to all at The "Good Tourism Blog at https://goodtourismblog.com.