It is where the dense forest on various hills habited by chimpanzees meets the deepest lake in Africa, and the second deepest in the entire world. #Gombe national park on the shores of Lake Tanganyika is one other unexplainable marvellous place in Tanzania.

Indeed, my trust that Tanzania is the most conserved hence most beautiful country in the world is further embedded. Tanzania- a country that was envisioned by its founder-Mwalimu Nyerere- as a #CandleOnKilimanjaro- possesses most beautiful natural places in the world including Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Kilimanjaro, and Zanzibar. Apart from these known ones, there are many other precious and super super beautiful and amazing places that are less known. Today, I’m talking about one of them – Gombe!

On Saturday 9^th December – on the independence day- I spent my day in Gombe. My journey started in Kigoma town where we boarded Tanapa (Tanzania National Parks) boat. We cruised for two hours to get to Gombe (depending on your budget, there’s an option of speed boat, which takes much less time- or passengers boat, which takes longer about 4 hrs). The boat ride was already an amazing fun. Lake Tanganyika is tranquil – remember it holds 18% of the world’s fresh water. The cruise passes through various villages on the shore with beautiful scenery. You get to feel the culture, especially on the evening when young and energetic boys are rowing their many boats ready for fishing expeditions. The cruise offers a view of sunrise and sunset   in the morning and evening, respectively.

Following the villages- you get into a part, where the national park starts and you notice the difference with a dense forest- a tropical rainforest on top of alternating hills with perfectly naturally lawn/green lands on top. The park has – on beach front- all facilities- reception, lodge (including tented lodge), restaurant, and a welcoming office with wifi.

When you start hiking, however, it gets 100% natural with tight/deep equatorial tropical rainforest. The hiking is so fulfilling and stress relieving. The chimpanzees are in their natural habitat and your presence does not disturb them. #Gombe has hundreds of them – a sign of successful conservation efforts given that they are endangered species.

Jane Goodall did a lot of research in Gombe, there is still lots of her “footprints” on the forest- for example- her feeding station. There is still an ongoing research by her institute. Thus, Gombe is also an international research centre for chimpanzee. There’s also a peak on one of the hills known as Jane’s pick.

Other astounding features in the park including refreshing full of pressure water falls.

The view of the lake from the hills is close to none of the scenery you’ve ever seen- it is as if you are looking at the sky on the ground!

Kigoma has a rich history. It is the home to over a century old #MVLiemba- a Germany war ship assembled in Lake Tanganyika during the first World War.

(Source: google image)

The ship still operates with international routes to DRC and Zambia.

(source: photo taken by the author on her phone)

Today, I visited the Port of Kigoma and I couldn’t stop thinking. Am having sleepless night out of the missing tourism potential. There were multitude of passengers waiting to go to Zambia through various stops using #MVLiemba on Lake Tanganyika. I was sad. Everything- the waiting, the set-up, passengers treatment etc- all display serious issues and manifestation of poverty. The ship was scheduled to leave at 4pm (it will then get to Zambia on Saturday (3 days after). It only operates twice a month) – at 7pm, it had not left, leave alone check-in the passengers in. I asked and was told may be the journey will start at 9 or 10pm. I wished to wait and see but I couldn’t.

(source: photo taken by the author on her phone)

Last time I was in Kigoma in 2013, I was super lucky as my host arranged for a special tour in #MVLiemba. I toured the whole ship and was thrilled. Then I was too academic- and I kept thinking of Plato and his analog of the ship. I blogged my experience and thinking.

Well, today I asked myself many questions- and mostly on why haven’t we turned Kigoma into a powerhouse through tourism.

Here is my thinking:

#Kigoma is the gate way to Central and Southern Africa.  It is partly composed of the beautiful Lake Tanganyika, through which its connected to Burundi, DRC, and Zambia.

Lake Tanganyika looks like a sky on the ground!

(source: photo taken by the author on her phone)

The Municipality is also a home to Ujiji- one of the key global historical town famously known as a first meeting point for Dr. Livingstone and Stanley, where Stanley uttered the popular historical phrase “Dr. Livingstone, I presume!”

(source: google images)

The town-Ujiji- keeps a long culture – mixture of Arabic and Swahili/African culture.  It is a potential cultural tourism area.

Kigoma is also a home to two national parks – the habitats of the endangered Gorillas – Gombe and Mahale.

(source: google images)

Now, why is Kigoma not yet the centre of tourism for the entire region- Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa? Why aren’t we using #MVLiemba as a tourist ship – with restaurants, bars, discos, etc inside it – doing specialized/designated touristic trip across the lakes to different countries?

My suggestion is as follows:

• MV Liemba should be turned into a touristic ship with all amenities into it. The government can invest on a new, safer, faster ship for transportation purposes- or encourage private sector to invest on ships to transport people from Kigoma to DRC, Burundi and Zambia as well as other in-country stops.
• Harmonize tourism efforts in the region through designing of touristic packages that include Gombe, Mahale, and Lake Tanganyika voyage tours.
• The Cultural Heritage and Antiques department should enhance tourism in #Ujiji by modernizing the streets, the Dr. Livingstone Memorial Museum, and the slave routes.
• Encourage cultural tourism in #Ujiju- the old houses, the streets, the hanged bed hand crafted bed sheets,  are a gem and so are the warm people around.

If these attractions are enhanced and harmonized, we can be sure to develop the Western part of our country. There are already key infrastructure in place – such as well-functioning airport- so the above should not be a hard to implement- they are a quick wins.

I urge all of us to think beyond our traditional means of economic development towards developing centres that will expand our economy. Tourism is an industry and it can fit very well with our industrialization policy. It has multiplier effects and can ensure massive employment.

Let’s do it.

“There is no such thing as society” is increasingly becoming one of my favourite quotes. Margaret Thatcher was heavily criticised for saying so. I understand her. Society locks people. Continue reading →

Observing the actions and reactions of the Bunge (the Parliament) in recent times on various issues, I’ve been asking myself, what’s going on?  Distracted Reflections. Marathons in my mind. Disturbed. Laughing and crying for my nation.  Then, just a few minutes ago , I remembered  a module I taught 8 years ago at the University of Nottingham, titled “Political Ideas in Revolution” of which we discussed Edmund Burke among many other political theorists.

Burke, who was once a Member of Parliament for Bristol (UK) spoke on the role of Parliament (quoted below). A piece, which I think can be useful in reminding the Bunge   (one of the three pillars/branches of the Government – with vested constitutional powers in the lines of the Magistrate and Executive) of  its key role. Acknowledging and understanding what Burke said will help the Bunge to get back to its  esteemed role rather than being a laughable partisan theatre it is threatened to become!

Here is what Burke said:

…Parliament is not a congress of ambassadors from different and hostile interests; which interests each must maintain, as an agent and advocate, against other agents and advocates; but parliament is a deliberative assembly of one nation, with one interest, that of the whole; where, not local purposes, not local prejudices ought to guide, but the general good, resulting from the general reason of the whole…(Burke: The Works of the Right Honorable Edmund Burke. 6 vols. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1854-56). 

I humbly advise all MPs and the entire leadership of Bunge to read this and be reminded of the true service that they are called upon by Tanzanians to perform. Let’s stop partisanship and hostility and serve our nation!

The adoption of liberalization policies in Tanzania in early 1990s and partly out of the great achievement in obtaining independence in most Southern African countries, led Tanzania to abandon its #Liberation foreign policy strategy and adopted #EconomicDiplomacy.  With that, related actions and efforts followed – using legal and institutional amendments (see for example the Mining Act 1998)

“I am conscious of the criticism I am subjected to by some of my political opponents and compatriots that in an attempt to woo investors I have given away too much…Much as I understand the concerns of those who wished the government to mine gold itself, or take a larger share of the proceeds, I believe the path we have taken is a better alternative,…We will continue to nurture the kind of investment climate that will enable us to turn the mineral wealth underground into a catalyst for rapid growth and development of our country and its people…” Benjamin Mkapa, President of Tanzania (1995-2005),  in the speech delivered in  2000 in Geita.  Continue reading →

Last week during APSA 2017 Africa Research Development Group Workshop in San Francisco USA, a colleague from Nigeria presented a paper on Contingency Violent Actions in Niger Delta. My mind was blown by the novel contribution he was bringing into the study of street violence Continue reading →

In March 2017, when the World Bank President visited Tanzania and Rwanda I was made sleepless by his tweets. They displayed serious different conceptualization of development strategy between Tanzania and Rwanda. My previous read on Alec Ross’ Industries of the Future had further exacerbated the insomnia.

Well, this end week, Jack Ma, Continue reading →