Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s tourism industry has asked the Government to establish a joint preparedness plan to protect visitors and minimise disruptions from potentially heavy El Niño rains expected during the peak tourism season.
The Tanzania Association of Tour Operators (Tato) chairman Wilbert Chambulo said tourism stakeholders had written to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism seeking a meeting to agree on emergency response measures before the rains intensify.
“We need to sit together as an industry and with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism to see what we can do,” he said.
He said the proposed plan should bring together the ministry, Tanzania National Parks Authority (Tanapa), Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA), Tanzania Meteorological Authority (TMA), Tanroads, Tarura, airport authorities, police, local authorities, medical facilities, aviation operators and tourism businesses.
Mr Chambulo said authorities should identify vulnerable roads, bridges, culverts, river crossings and airstrips in tourist areas and undertake necessary maintenance before the rains.
Emergency equipment such as graders, excavators, loaders, recovery vehicles, fuel and construction materials should also be positioned strategically to enable rapid response.
“We need to know what happens if something happens. We need to know where incidents are reported, who takes responsibility and where the centre of communication is,” he said.
The industry also wants clearly designated emergency contacts and officers, alternative access and evacuation routes, and regular updates on road conditions, river levels and closed routes.
The framework should also establish procedures for rescuing stranded tourists and workers, handling medical emergencies and deciding when roads, airstrips, river crossings and water-based tourism activities should be closed for safety reasons.
The call comes ahead of October, when the tourism industry enters its high season, particularly in the northern safari circuit.
Mr Chambulo said the potential disruptions also presented financial risks because many visitors had already paid for their bookings.
“About 90 per cent of the money for some bookings has already been paid,” he said.
He said operators had previously relied on informal arrangements to assist stranded tourists, including accommodating them at alternative properties or arranging flights when roads became impassable.
However, he said such arrangements should be incorporated into a formal Government-private sector framework to clarify responsibilities, communication and costs.
The industry also wants agreement on how advance payments, accommodation and conservation fees should be handled when tourists cannot reach destinations because of extreme weather.
“We should not make the guest suffer or allow one side to carry all the losses,” Mr Chambulo said.
He said the industry was not advising tourists against visiting Tanzania because of the expected rains.
“We will not tell visitors not to come because of the rain. What we need are mitigation measures,” he said.
He said the priority was to ensure Tanzania had a coordinated emergency system capable of protecting visitors and maintaining access to tourist destinations when extreme weather disrupts normal operations.
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