Tunisia Welcomes Back Tourists

Tunisia Welcomes Back Tourists

By Sarah Lynch of USA Today

TUNIS, Tunisia – Stationed throughout a cobblestone labyrinth in the capital's old quarter, shop owners await the revival of a tourism sector that sunk with the rise of a revolution.

The social and political freedoms Tunisians gained after the three-year-old ouster of a longtime dictator were worth the economic struggles, they say. Now, Tunisians are ready to welcome travelers back to their country.

"Tunisia is ready to bring tourism back," says Lasaad Essid, 54, hammering designs into a decorative plate. "And we'll even exceed what we used to achieve, seeing even more tourists than before the revolution."

With a vast coastline along the Mediterranean Sea, Tunisia is celebrated for its beach resorts, ancient ruins and sprawling desert. UNESCO praises Dougga, an expansive site in the northern part of the country, as North Africa's best-preserved Africo-Roman town that shows what daily life was like for those who lived there in antiquity.

In January, Condé Nast Traveler called Tunisia the next big travel destination, celebrating the country for its optimistic atmosphere and open-mindedness. Society's tolerance for diversity in the majority Muslim country not only helped propel the country on a path toward full democracy over the last three years but also allows for a vibrant nightlife where booze flows freely and music keeps partygoers out through the morning's early hours.

Tunisia's tourism minister Amel Karboul says the country could see a record 7 million tourists visiting this year.

"I tell Western tourists, come to Tunisia, the first democracy in the Arab world, to share this historic moment and support a democratic transition and also enjoy its sun, beaches, desert and culture," Karboul recently told Reuters.

The tourism industry declined with the start of the Jasmine Revolution, which kicked off in late 2010 and ousted longtime leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. While the sector has since improved, it has yet to fully recover.

Many believe increasing political stability will bolster the industry, which employs 400,000 people, industry experts say, and accounts for 7.5% of gross domestic product. The country adopted a new and progressive constitution earlier this year and an Islamist-led government stepped down to make way for a caretaker cabinet. Elections expected to begin this fall will complete a democratic transition.

"With finalizing the constitution and with consensus among political groups, we are hoping for a more prosperous situation," says Borhene Ben Ghorbal, 43, who owns a tourist shop in the heart of the capital. "With the harmony happening around the country it's a good sign, a good push, but there are a lot of steps that still need to be taken."

In a volatile region, terrorism is a primary challenge facing the tourism industry. Some would-be visitors have been scared off by general unrest and militant attacks, and some Western nations continue to uphold travel warnings to citizens.

In a direct blow to the industry last fall, a suicide bomber struck a beach near a hotel in the tourist resort town of Sousse, underscoring the widespread militant violence that has plagued the nation since Ben Ali's 2011 ouster.

"The possibility of further attacks, including in the coastal resorts and desert areas cannot be ruled out," the United Kingdom's Foreign and Commonwealth Office warns citizens in an online summary of travel advice.

"There is a general threat from terrorism, including kidnapping," it says, advising against travel to some areas in Tunisia's south and near the Libyan and Algerian borders.

Still, Mohamed Ali Toumi, head of a Tunisian federation of travel agents, says that he and others who work in the industry are confident that the government has made security gains since authorities launched a crackdown last year on militants.

"I look at the bright side," Ali Toumi says. "Tunisian security forces and the police are doing their best to destroy terrorism."

In early March, Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki lifted a three-year-old state of emergency in what was perceived as a largely symbolic move to signal that security is improving.

And the U.S. State Department followed suit, recently lifting a travel warning for Tunisia that was in place since September 2012 following an attack on Tunis's U.S. embassy.

"After assessing the current situation in Tunisia, the Department of State determined that circumstances did not merit extending the Travel Warning for Tunisia," a March 28 message to U.S. citizens said.

Tunisia aims to draw more German, Russian and British visitors and attract more tourists from its traditional market, France, tourism minister Karboul told Reuters. There also is potential to attract Canadians and Chinese, Ali Toumi said. Syphax, a private Tunisian airline, intends to begin direct flights between Tunis and Montreal and possibly between New York and Tunis, he said.

"With this proper, calm atmosphere, we are ready to welcome tourists," says Marwan Ben Ghorbel, whose family owns a tourist shop. "Things are picking up and getting better but we are hoping for more improvements with the new government."

Industry experts say revival efforts will focus on developing cultural tourism and drawing visitors through big events such as music festivals.

Inside the market in the capital's old quarter, shop owner Essid is optimistic that with a little work, Tunisians can draw tourists back.

"We are brave enough to do what we want to do," Essid says. "We made a revolution and now we will get tourism back on its feet and make it strong again."

For help booking a trip to Tunisia, contact a travel agent specialist at Tripology.com.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/dispatches/2014/04/22/tunisia-tourism/7086801/

 

Facts About African Beliefs From New Pew Research Center Study

Ten things we have learnt about Africa

The Pew Research Center has just released one of the biggest ever studies on attitudes to religion and morality in Africa, which has revealed a host of interesting facts.

Here are 10 things we have learnt from the study, which surveyed 25,000 people in 19 countries.

1. 75% of South Africans think polygamy is "morally wrong" - bad news for their president, as Jacob Zuma took his third wife earlier this year and is engaged to a fourth. However, the survey also revealed some possible double-standards. While only 7% of Rwandans approved of polygamy (although this did include women), a rather higher number - 17% - of men said they had more than one wife.

2. An overwhelming majority of respondents disapproved of homosexual behavior. In three countries - Zambia, Kenya and Cameroon - this was a massive 98%. Interestingly, one of the countries with the highest numbers of people - 11% - accepting homosexuals is Uganda, where an MP is trying to get legislation passed which would punish homosexual acts with life in prison and even death in some cases. The former Portuguese colonies of Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique were also relatively tolerant of homosexuality.

3. Africa is probably the world's most religious continent, with more than 80% saying they believed in God in most countries. At least half of the Christians questioned expect Jesus Christ to return to earth during their lifetimes. In Ethiopia, 74% of Christians say they have experienced or witnessed the devil or evil spirits being driven out of a person and in Ghana, 40% of Christians say they have had a direct revelation from God. About half of all Muslims expect to see the reunification of the Islamic world under a single ruler, or caliph, in their lifetimes.

4. Zimbabwe, where the Lemba people say they are the lost tribe of Israel, was not one of the countries surveyed. But 26% of Nigerian Christians said they traced their origins back to Israel or Palestine.

5. Belief in witchcraft is also common - about 40%; a similar percentage also visits traditional healers to cure sickness. Belief in witchcraft is highest in Tanzania with 93% - this is the country where witchdoctors say that magic potions are more effective if they contain body parts of people with albinism. Ethiopia had the lowest levels of belief in witchcraft - at just 17%. Belief that juju or sacred objects can prevent bad things happening was generally lower - between 20 and 30%. In Senegal, however, 75% thought such things worked - far higher than in Tanzania (49%). It may come as a surprise to learn that South Africa had the highest number of people - 52% - saying they took part in ceremonies of traditional religions, or honored or celebrated their ancestors.

6. Predictably, there was also a religious split concerning alcohol, banned by Islam. Surprisingly, however, more Muslims in Chad (23%) approved of booze, than Ethiopian Christians (5%). This comes as a huge surprise to Ethiopia experts, however, who point out that it is traditional to welcome Orthodox Christian clergy with traditional honey beer when they visit your house. Maybe "alcohol" was only taken to mean spirits by some of the respondents?

7. Attitudes to divorce showed a strong divide along religious lines in Nigeria. A massive 79% of Christians thought it was "morally wrong", while among Muslims, a narrow majority (46-41%) accepted divorce.

8. In recent years, Islamist hardliners in Somalia and Nigeria have introduced strict punishment based on Sharia law, such as amputating the hands of thieves and even stoning to death for adultery. The majority of people disapproved of such Sharia punishments. In Nigeria, they were backed by about 40% of Muslims and less than 10% of Christians. However, a majority did approve of whippings and amputations in Senegal and Mali. In nearby Guinea-Bissau, even 50% of Christians backed them. This was double the rate among Muslims in Ethiopia (25%) - maybe it feels like a more realistic prospect to them, as they share a border with Somalia and most Muslim Ethiopians are ethnic Somalis.
The blending of religions like Islam and Christianity with African religions is one way of ensuring survival of traditional religions

9. The survey also asked about material well-being in the world's poorest continent. Not so long ago, Cameroon regularly topped surveys of champagne consumption per head. However, a shocking 71% of Cameroonians surveyed said there were times in the past year when they did not have enough money to buy food. In Ethiopia, which is commonly seen as a country struggling to feed itself, the rate was far lower - at 30% - the lowest of all countries surveyed.

10. Ethiopia did, however, have the lowest numbers of people - 7% - who said they regularly used the internet. Rwanda's President Paul Kagame is striving to turn his country into Africa's answer to Silicon Valley and is being helped by the arrival of several new fiber optic cables off the east coast of Africa. He will be encouraged by the finding that 30% of his countrymen - the highest number - regularly browsed the web. Mobile phones were far more common - with 81% of respondents in Botswana owning one. Many countries reported more than 50% having phones but here, Rwanda lagged behind at just 35%.