ravelling and adventure are manna for the soul. We outdoor Brits pride ourselves on our solid ethics and values: we love enjoying the wild places and want to leave them better than we found them. But how many of us have been shocked by third-world poverty that we’ve seen on our travels and wished
that we could actually do something about it? Take Tanzania. Tourism there – especially trekking and safari – is growing at a frenetic pace, with revenue and visitors doubling in the last decade. Responsible development of this major contribution to the nation’s GDP seems the best way to safeguard the national commitment to conservation, with 40% of Tanzania put aside in a series of national parks, reserves and conservation areas. Making the grandeur of this beautiful country pay is key – and that means pay from the point of view of the locals too. At least 20,000 people a year trek on Kilimanjaro,
typically paying around £2,000 each to do so, yet the percentage of tourist dollars that benefits the locals is tiny: a porter is lucky to earn £7 a day. There is huge scope for Brits to do some good in Tanzania, as we represent 12% of the total visitors to the country, ranking alongside the USA as the largest contingent of non-African visitors to Tanzania. As I climbed Kilimanjaro in August 2015 with my 15-year-old son, I pondered the plight of the third-world worker, and the opportunities and threats that arrive with us jet-setting tourists. It was obvious that ever-attentive head guide Nelson was anxious to avoid even the smallest of issues with potentially demanding Europeans. As we started the Machame route, he was worrying that kit had got a bit damp during transfer in the rain at the park gate. Any complaint to a trekking company head office could presumably jeopardise a guide’s future work opportunities here. Nelson had hoped to be an engineer, but the need to provide for his family drove him away from education and he became a mountain
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