While some safaris boil down to a race for the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros and buffalo), with terrible consequences for the animals observed and their natural habitat, some want to put a stop to it.
This week, the United States announced that it would support the promotion of environmentally friendly safaris in Africa, where the tourism industry is once again starting to come into full swing.
The US Agency for International Development (USAID) made the announcement at a three-day summit that brought together nearly fifty African leaders in Washington.
The fledgling Africa Conservation and Communities Tourism Fund (ACCT), led by investors and conservationists, hopes to raise some $75 million to fund safari operators across the continent.
USAID has pledged $2.5 million to de-risk and accelerate the fund, which could benefit about 44,000 people.
ACCT will work with safari operators in Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia.
Read alsoA more eco-responsible safari in Africa is possible!
“The fate of millions of wild lives is at stake”
A note on the project published earlier this year by Align Impact, an investment advisory organisation, points out that ecotourism operators have been ravaged by Covid-19 travel restrictions.
“The fate of millions of hectares of land and wildlife is at stake
,” says Impact Align.
Before adding:
"If the operators fail to recover financially, wild lands that were previously protected will be exposed to a high risk of destruction, which would only worsen the health of the planet, exacerbate climate change, and would deprive local people of employment opportunities.”
At the summit in Washington, the United States unveiled plans to invest nearly $55 billion in Africa to improve health infrastructure, promote renewable energy, and stave off hunger.