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How not to promote Ethiopia - A response Dear Tigray Net, As one of the participants on the Ethiopia stand at the World Travel Market (WTM) in London, I would like to respond to the attack launched by Linda Williams (How not to promote Ethiopia), displayed on your website. Linda describes herself as a free Lance Journalist (sic), but though she is eager to give out lessons to us in the tourist industry, she clearly knows little about journalism. An article, even an opinion piece, should make some attempt at balance by presenting different view points and relevant quotes. Instead, Linda gives us a rant (I wouldnt describe her contribution as an article) in which we only get her views, and her views alone. Even for a profession noted for its egotists, Linda surely qualifies for a special award in ego mania. One of the participants on the Ethiopia stand was the newly appointed Minister of State for Tourism, W/zo Tadelech Dalacho. Any journalist worth his or her salt, with even a modicum of knowledge of their profession, would have asked themselves: “shouldn’t I get some response from the government official assigned to the sector, surely her views and opinions will have relevance and importance, even if I personally disagree with them? Particularly as this is a new development, whereby Ethiopias tourism sector will be represented at cabinet level?” Other (real) journalists who came to the stand made a point of interviewing W/zo Tadelech, but not Linda, who quotes no one except herself. (Towards the end of her piece she elevates herself to the royal we not only is she a journalist, but also a participant in and promoter of Ethiopias tourist industry. None of us have ever heard of her.) I certainly was not interviewed, though I appeared in the photos she sent me of the “empty” stand, and nor were any of my colleagues. Ethiopia’s tour operators (mainly represented in the Ethiopian Tour Operators Association - ETOA) have made huge efforts since 1991 to rebuild the tourism sector. Visitor arrivals have more than doubled during this period, and income from tourism now constitutes about 17% of foreign currency earnings, and nearly 3% of GDP. Vacation tourists constitute about 35% of the 200,000 visitors in 2004 (not the 4000 that Linda has calculated.) ETOA members attend tourism trade fairs in Japan, China, Europe and USA, and host tour groups from all over the world. If we were unable, as Linda alleges, to put together an itinerary, whether for history and culture, trekking, bird watching, endemic wildlife or ethnic tourism, advising our clients of road conditions, the time taken to cover distances, the standards of hotels and the like, how do we manage to bring back the same companies year after year? Linda says we should hire "Professional marketing executives" or agencies to do the job for us (probably thinking of a nice job for herself, and who are “we” and “us” by the way?) it will be cheaper and more profitable. The fact is that tour operators who participate cover their own costs - stand costs, flights and living expenses for WTM add up to a minimum of 35,000 birr per participant. Ethiopia could be doing better with its tourism sector, but promotion - increasing demand - is only a small part of it. We need to build up tourist supply, which means better infrastructure, more tourist class hotels, better trained guides, more efficient tour companies, better transport fleets, better service delivery as a whole, including banking and financial services, and set in place all the government policies which help make these things happen. This is not achieved by “free Lance Journalists” getting excited at WTM, even if they have been “married to an Ethiopian for 12 years”. (And what on earth has this got to do with the price of fish? If I was married to a Brazilian for 50 years and lived in Scandinavia, would that make me an expert on Brazil’s tourist sector, or its agriculture or industry for that matter?) Building up a tourism sector which can not only deliver but manages to retain tourist earnings for the people of the country requires a concerted effort by all stake holders, in the public and private sectors, and among the public at large. The tourist industry in developing countries is generally characterized by the expatriation of tourism earnings and this is particularly true of Linda’s models - Saint Lucia, Barbados, Turks and Caicos and other Caribbean islands, where retention of tourism receipts is as little as 10%. In terms of Ethiopia’s stand, for the readers of Tigray Net, and all who have seen her article but who were not at the WTM, let’s put the record straight. Ethiopia’s stand at international exhibitions over the last few years has been totally revamped and has images from all over the country, including a large replica of the Axum obelisk and does not look bad at all. Space allocated depends on the money available, but the Ethiopia stand was not in a dimly lit corner but was in fact right next to the Kenya stand which Linda admired so much. The Ethiopian Tourism Commission had some very high quality brochures printed by Camerapix, the company which belonged to Mohammed Amin, and they are generally much admired. Linda showed up on the afternoon of the last day (most business is done on the first two days, when only trade visitors are allowed in), when many stands start to shut down. There were a couple of participants on the Ethiopian stand who failed to come, due to delays in having their British visas processed, but I know that I and my colleagues, having invested so much money, were there throughout, even eating our lunches at the stand. It’s clear that what Linda knows about tourism would fit on the back of a postage stamp, but what provoked her anger? Year after year, participants on stands at international travel exhibitions have to deal with people claiming to be journalists who ask for free trips, on the basis that they will write articles promoting the country. We never respond to self styled freelance journalists, knowing them to be only interested in a free ride, but welcome genuine journalists, attached to real news papers, radio stations and TV channels. ETOA, and its members, along with Ethiopian Airlines, have over the years hosted journalists from Scandinavia and most European countries, China, Japan, North and South America. Linda didn’t get her free trip, which prompted her shallow and unhelpful piece. If that’s all she’s got to stay, I suggest she stays in Sweden. Tony Hickey Tony Hickey is the General Manager of Village Ethiopia and an elected Board Member of the Ethiopian Tour Operators Association. (He has been married to an Ethiopian for 32 years, but does not feel that this qualifies him for anything in particular, though some would argue that it qualifies his wife for a medal.) Tony Hickey General Manager Village Ethiopia Location: National Hotel, off Mesqal Square Tel: (251-1) 15523497, 15508869, 15515166, Ext 220. Mobile: 0911228887 Fax: (251-1) 15551276 PO Box 15151, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Email: village.ethiopia@ethionet.et Web: www.village-ethiopia.net www.tigrai.net |