Agricultural Tourism in Cameroon - Case Study Example

Agricultural Tourism in Cameroon Cameroon is famous as the ‘melting point of Africa’ because of its diversity. It possesses all sorts of African crops such as sugar, coffee, etc, Landscape including mountains, beaches, deserts, etc and African inhabitants who belong to entirely different ethnic backgrounds and speak different languages. It has beautiful rain forests in the south eastern part of the country and desert at the northern end in addition to this it has regular rainfalls which makes travelling through the country even more attractive for tourists (West). However despite of all the beautiful location and tropical crops available throughout the country tourism is comparatively very low. People are usually unfamiliar with the hidden beauty of the place or they do not have sufficient guidance to travel there. This project on Agricultural Tourism in Cameroon is based on the objective of increasing tourism in the country by a significant percentage which will ultimately result in increased economic growth. Initially the hidden adventure of visiting Cameroon shall be unveiled in order to attract tourist (Fund). For this purpose the project will limit its scope only at the Tropical Crops and Landscapes of the country as these are the major components which influence tourism. Cameroon is blessed with immense natural resources in addition to cultural heritage and inhabitants of majestic characteristics. It has the unique ecotourism sites of the world with Kapsiki summits in the North and in Kibri located in the Atlantic Ocean which directly falls in to the sea portraying a beautiful scene for the tourists. Building Agricultural Tourism Project in Cameroon is a challenging task because there is no cultural of tourism in the country, people do not like many foreigners roaming around them neither they encourage to build tourism supportive organization either on public or private level. Additionally it is very difficult for tourists to reach there and find accommodation for them since Africans of Cameroon do not provide accommodation services to the tourists coming to their land. Animals found in the forest are extremely dangerous and tourists cannot risk traveling without a proper tourist guide (West). The most important landscape open for tourism in Cameroon are (West): Mountains: They are usually found on the western part of the country. They provide extensive activities and sports to tourist such as mountain hiking, etc. Deserts: The famous Sahara desert is present in the north of the country. Forests: Rainforests are present in the southern and eastern parts which are primarily responsible for the overall climate of the country. National Parks: Various national parks are located at different places with in the country some of them are centuries old and attract great many tourists from all around the world. Following are most attractive tropical crops for tourist visiting Cameroon (Atangana) : Banana: Cameroon produces more than 400,000 tons of bananas which are far more than the actual needs of the population. The bananas of Cameroon are famous because of their distinctive characteristics including their smell and size which is very attractive to the tourists visiting the country. Coffee: It is produced from the Western highlands of the country. The sweet aroma of coffee, its flavor and the real qualities of Boyo Arabica coffee makes it a part of the tourist packages which is highly attractive for all the coffee lovers. Sugar: Cameroon is active in trade of sugar. There are several mills within the country which produce and exports sugar to other parts of the world. Tourists who also travel for the purpose of identifying business opportunities then Cameroon is the most suitable place for them. Time Period The Project will start by the mid of 2013 and will be completed within one year i.e. by the mid of 2014. It is a team based work consisting of five core team members and a group of 10 members acting as supporters to the project. Plan The project will perform its operation according to the following plan (Walker): Experience: Our Primary focus is to provide ultimate experience of African landscape and tropical crops which are distinctive to the country of Cameroon. The tourist will be provided with adequate accommodation and a reliable guide who will be available to them all the time until their tour ends. They will also be given transport service and other facilities such as food, cultural awareness, etc. Strategic Plan: At the initial point we have identified our target market comprising of individuals who have little knowledge about the African country; Cameroon, and who are unable to visit the country due to visa strictness, unavailability of transport, the huge cultural different between the two countries and lack of proper guidance to have a tour of Cameroon. Subsequently we have identified the local ecotourism products such as the following (Belda): Seaside Tourism: Cameroon has a distinctive and highly attractive coastal region which is ideal for seaside tourists. The beautiful beaches have covered the coconut trees which leaves an everlasting impression over the tourist. The perfect holiday areas in the country are the Londji Beach near Kibri and the Lobe fall which directly fall in to the sea and represent beautiful scenes. Cultural Tourism: Africa as a whole has many cultures and customs existing all at one place since hundreds of years. There are more than 200 categories of ethnic groups in Cameroon alone which have entirely different lifestyles, customs, traditions, religious views and practices. Additionally all these cultures have their own distinctive and aboriginal house architectures which are significantly attractive for majority of tourists. Safari: Cameroon is full of National parks which provide ultimate adventure to its visitors. The parks also have the facilities of Safari. The most suitable parks for the purpose of Safari are situated in the Northern areas of the country. Mountaineering: Mount Cameroon gives extensive opportunities to the tourists interested in mountaineering. Mountains are present in the north and west regions of the country. The Mount Cameroon race is famous among youth who are highly adventurous. These mounts are at a distance from the city centre which requires tourists to travel on their own and they reach to the mountains usually within the time span of 3 days. Hunting: Rare species of Fauna are readily available in the northern part of the country which invites tourists for hunting purposes. For instance, Waza which is a famous hunting place in Africa and also the richest park existing in the country which possesses different species of lions, elephants, giraffes, etc. within its territory. Ecosystem: A number of national parks and natural reserves exist in the country which is better known as the patrimony of humanity. For example, the national park of Korup is almost 3 million years old which makes it the most significant site of the country and also the focus of tourists. Resources Human Resources: Significant human resources are required to attain the desired objectives associated with this project. Basically in economics human resources refers to the number of people (employees or labors) working together to achieve the same objective. We require a team of five core members who have excellent knowledge about project development, history and tourists’ friendly sites of Cameroon and other required skills such as utilizing the financial resources so as to generate high revenues out of the resources applied. In addition to this we require skilled workers and people who belong to Cameroon and possess sound knowledge about different parts of the country and have awareness about the local customs and traditions. They should also have complete knowledge of the local languages. All these characteristics will ultimately help the management in order to arrange accommodation, tourists guide and other necessary facilities (Walker). Financial Resources: It is huge project which needs to have sufficient financial resources so that the desired outcomes are achieved well on time. In order to generated funds and increase the financial resources the operations shall be done on partnership basis. Partnerships can be easily developed with major companies of the country; the economic development office can also support such projects. Additionally we can also approach the chamber of commerce to help us in supporting this project. Finally we need a budget of $3 million to carry the project’s operations up to the next year. This budget includes the amounts to be paid to different employees, to make purchases and payments to the supplies. However if the expenses pertaining to the project goes beyond the budget then that will cause negative effects on the overall productivity of employees, operational activities and desired outcomes (Walker). Marketing Strategy: The initial step in this regard is to add the project operations on different tourist websites. So that when potential customers are looking for some tourism projects extending facilities to have a tour of Agricultural part of Cameroon then they can easily locate our services. Since the project is based up on the agricultural tourism such as tropical crops and landscapes therefore the marketing strategies shall be made with the objective of increasing trade and developing the overall economic condition of the country (Walker). Desired Outcomes Despite of all the positive elements attached to the land of Cameroon the tourism is very limited over there however, there are various reasons for this limited tourism for instance, the inhabitants are more in to their own lives and do not encourage tourism additionally the visa policy is very strict and capturing pictures of the buildings and bridges is strictly prohibited because people think that it will propagate negative image of the country (Burghard Rauschelbach). This project is built up considering all these perspectives with the objective of eliminating the hurdles in the way of Agricultural tourism so as to achieve the desired outcomes. Following the desired outcomes of the project: Unveiling Cameroon: Bringing the hidden beauty of Cameroon Agricultural part especially tropical crops and landscapes to the world tourists’ consideration so that they can get familiar with the world’s oldest sites, customs and traditions. Cameroon is one of those places on the face of the earth which have the most diverse population. As mentioned earlier that there are most than 250 ethnic groups in Cameroon who have their own languages, religious practices and beliefs. Developing Tourism in the country: Records indicates that Cameroon has always lacked behind in the tourism industry therefore the key focus of this project is to flourish tourism in the country with entirely new strategies. This will require to bring ease in to the governmental policies regarding tourism additionally the project is looking forwards to develop different resorts in Cameroon so as to facilitate tourists in the long run with the most relaxed environment and the best services. Little awareness shall also be given to the local people in order to convince them about the positive attributes of tourism and also to remove the misconceptions regarding the propagation of negative image of Cameroon through picture. This is a significantly difficult task to do however, within the time period of 5 years it could be achieved. To improve the current situation and to develop the tourism in Cameroon this project will contribute a lot as it will be giving employment to the local residents. They will be responsible to carry out all the major tasks such as convincing the government official to make some flexibility in to the visa options for tourists and the remove the restriction from capturing picture of different sites within the country. Minor tasks would involve all the responsibilities which are related to serve the tourists from arrival to departure. Revenues: The most desirable outcome of any project related to business or economic activity is to generate more and more profits. Tourism is one of the most profitable industries as it does not require much investment at the initial point but it ensures the revenues in future. In this case also the project is expected to generate revenues not only for the owners but also for the overall economy. Tourism industry is far different form manufacturing industries as it encompasses the entire national and natural resources therefore the revenues are also shared by the government. After generating sufficient revenues with the initial operations of the project the acquired amount shall be reinvested in the subsequent project for instance, building tourists’ resorts and getting other similar facilities for them. This will help in keeping the money in flow so that external funding is not required in future. Increased Trade: tourism is directly linked with the increase in trade as more and more people visits one country the chances of excellence in trade greatly increases for that particular country. Especially in this case of Agricultural tourism there are significant opportunities for the local farmers to initiate trade with the foreigners through tropical crops such as banana, rubber, sugar, etc. this will flourish import and export throughout the country. Tourism is one of the most applicable ways of increasing trade. Countries which are lacking behind in their tourism industry also have to face huge setback in trade especially those of the tropical crops. In addition to this in the current world scenario the landscapes such as those existing in Cameroon are a big source of increasing business activities since tourists throughout the world are in search of such sites. As the project will be among the initial tourism projects implemented in Cameroon therefore there are significantly more chances that it will increase trade in the region. Economic Growth: Finally the most substantial outcome of this project is to ensure economic growth and to fulfill the gaps between government revenues which are persistently growing because of poor functioning of tourism industry. All the above factors will contribute to the economic growth since when tourism will flourish trades will automatically increases which leads to increased foreign exchange and money supply in the country and ultimately economic growth takes place. Works Cited Atangana, Luc Magloire Mbarga. "Banana Production: Cameroon Targets 500,000 Tons Annually by 2013." Cameroon Tribune Web. 12 Jan 2012. Print. Belda, Pascal. Cameroon. Spain: MTH Multimedia S.L., 2006. Print. Burghard Rauschelbach, Annette Schäfer, Birgit Steck. Cooperating for Sustainable Tourism: Proceedings of the Forum International at the Reisepavillon. Germany: Kasparek Verlag, 2002. Print. Fund, International Monetary. Cameroon: Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper. Washington DC: International Monetary Fund, 2010. Print. Walker, Martha A. "Agritourism: Ideas and Resources." Virginia Polytechnic Institute 2009. Print. West, Ben. Cameroon. USA: Bradt Travel Guides, 2011. Print. Read More