Cultural Landscapes And Tourism Development In Botswana: The Case Of Moremi Gorge In Eastern Botswana

Type Journal Article - Botswana Journal of Business
Title Cultural Landscapes And Tourism Development In Botswana: The Case Of Moremi Gorge In Eastern Botswana
Author(s)
Volume 10
Issue 1
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2017
Page numbers 117-137
URL http://journals.ub.bw/index.php/bjb/article/viewFile/957/556
Abstract
Cultural landscapes of tourism are fundamentally contradictory sites considering the interests
of all stakeholders involved in their management. Key contradictions relate to cultural
authenticity, credibility, and the values that people who associate with such landscapes attach
to them. The Botswana tourism industry needs to carefully confront these contradictions to
maximize and sustain the tourist potential of cultural landscapes. In the World Heritage list
there are presently 47 African cultural properties some of which, are considered as cultural
landscapes as they bear exceptional cultural traditions of human settlements, land use, and
associated with events, living traditions, and beliefs. Sukur (Nigeria), Koutammakou (Togo),
Bassari (Senegal), Mapungubwe and Richtersveld (South Africa), Mijikenda Forests
(Kenya), and Konso (Ethiopia) are some of the most representative sites. This paper uses
secondary data to identify and discuss the impacts of tourism development on cultural
landscapes. The paper further considers the implications of such impacts for the ancestral
(Sedimo) or cultural beliefs of the people of Goo-Moremi Village. The paper concludes by
discussing existing opportunities for developing the tourism-product base for Goo-Moremi
cultural landscape based on their beliefs, taboos and the general tourism environment.

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