19 October 2012: The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), together with the Government of Tanzania, convened the First Pan-African Conference on Sustainable Tourism in African National Parks, from 15-18 October, in Arusha, Tanzania. Attended by tourism ministers, representatives of the private sector, and conservation officials, the Conference adopted the Arusha Declaration.

The Declaration underscores that tourism is one of the most effective ways to preserve Africa’s national parks and protected areas, while creating jobs and income for local communities. Specifically, the Declaration: encourages African governments to consider the role and potential for sustainable tourism in national parks and protected areas as a priority in their national policies; recommends countries to have high consideration of issues related to good governance of sustainable tourism and particularly the need to directly associate with local communities in management of parks and protected areas to ensure that they gain concrete benefits in terms of employment and income generation; suggests that countries consider opportunities for collaboration on improving policies for and management of tourism in National Parks and Protected Areas, and to exchange knowledge and technical expertise towards this end; requests the UNWTO to consider the creation of observatories to develop scientific, environmental, economic knowledge and social awareness regarding national parks and protected areas in Africa; and decides that the Conference will meet biannually on a rotational basis in order to maintain a permanent forum on the subject. [UNWTO Press Release] [Conference Website] [Arusha Declaration]