Uniform park fees for EA residents

[Invisible]

Elephants at the Amboseli game park in Kenya with Mt Kilimanjaro in the background. EAC citizens will pay a uniform entry fee to Tanzania’s parks. Photo/ANTHONY KAMAU


By McADAMS MICHAEL
The East African
March 22, 2010

Residents of the East African Community will now pay the same fees as Tanzanians to enter the country’s national parks.

“This is to inform you that the nationals of Rwanda and Burundi are to be charged preferential rates just like those of Kenya and Uganda,” said Tanzania National Parks Authority in a letter to all chief park wardens.

“This arrangement is in line with the EAC plan to promote the region as a single tourism destination,” Tanapa spokesman Pascal Shelutete said.

This means EAC residents will pay Tsh1,500 (about $1) for adults and Tsh500 (about US cents 35) for children to visit any national park in Tanzania per day.

Analysts believe the uniform fee directive is timely and will boost the industry in the East African Common Market with nearly 130 million consumers and a combined GDP of nearly $60 billion.

In 2006, each of the three founding EAC partner states of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda were charging different figures for non-citizens.

In Uganda, the entrance fee for EA citizens to any of the country’s national parks was $10 per day while Ugandans were charged Ush5,000 ($2.5).

In Tanzania, the entry fees to Mount Kilimanjaro and Serengeti for foreign tourists and EAC residents was $60 and $50 respectively. In Kenya, the average fee for non-citizens was set at $30 per adult and $10 per student or child, per day.

Meanwhile, sources at the EAC Secretariat say a task force appointed to study the region’s preparedness for a single tourist visa will present its report in June this year.

“The partner states are still consulting on the matter with a possibility of a trial visa introduced first, as they try to harmonise their tourism policies and laws,” the source explained.

The Secretariat is reported to have approached the partner states seeking information from the immigration departments on visa regulations and visa statistics from major tourism market countries.

Trial visa

Sources added that there was a likelihood of starting with a trial single visa in June this year, to determine whether EA is ready to introduce a single tourist visa for the region.

Experts working on the matter want visitor statistics from the sample countries that will participate in the suggested trial visa before the actual document is introduced.

The major source markets for tourists coming to East Africa are the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Australia, Japan, Italy, Netherlands, South Africa and Scandinavian countries.

Also sought is information on information and communication technology (ICT) systems used by the partner states to network with various centres such as border points and embassies.

Recently, tourism players based in Arusha faulted EAC governments for delaying the single tourist entry visa for the region.

Tourists visiting the region often spend hours crossing from one EAC state to another because they need different visas for each country.

 

[Wacha1]

Viongozi wa Tanzania ni wajinga. Kenya are suffering from dwindling tourists solution yao ni kufanya harmonisation na sisi. Tunaingia kichwa kichwa kwa ujinga ujinga tu, figures zipo tena wazi tu huu ni muda mzuri kwa opposition kuomba kura kwa kuvunja EAC watawaangusha hawa mafedhuli kwa kishindo.

 

[Mlenge]

Tanzania ina wapinzani?

kwa nini wote wamekaa kimya kuhusu EAC, tena wengine wanaunga mkono EAC!

disappointing.

Mlenge

 

[Abdulhalim]

Binafsi sioni tatizo la hizo fees, tatizo ni je sisi kaa waTZ tumewekeza huko kwenye Utalii kiasi kwamba tutafaidika na kuja kwa watalii.?? Yes or no?

Kama hatujawekeza, na hatuna mpango wa kuwekeza, ni kazi bure kuhangaika kuweka policy in place ili wageni 'wawekezaji' wafaidike..

Kuna thread niiona miezi kadhaa ilopita kuhusu utalii Znz, mleta thread akionesha jinsi gani wawekezaji wavyofaidika na vivutio vyetu kwa kuwalipisha watalii kwa dola, bidhaa za mahotelini zinatoka kwao, na wanawalipa wazawa fedha mbuzi (underemployment) achilia mbali kuwaajiri wageni ktk kaz ambazo zingeweza kufanywa na wazawa.

Hii nchi haiishi kunishangaza.

 

[The Quonquerer]

I hate this federation thing! Tatizo la majority wa nchii ni majuha, na viongozi ni majuha, watatuletea vita ya kiraia..and its around the corner kwa mwendo huu. Ile Tanzania kisiwa cha amani will be a history!

 

[Smatta]

I hate this federation thing! Tatizo la majority wa nchii ni majuha, na viongozi ni majuha, watatuletea vita ya kiraia..and its around the corner kwa mwendo huu. Ile Tanzania kisiwa cha amani will be a history!

I think you should have a shift in ideologies, war or bloodshed never helped anyone or solved anything.

Having read your posts for sometime now, I have unfortunately noticed that you keep stating that you or rather, Tanzanians should go to the bush to fight it out with the 'foreigners' when the EAC is fully implemented. To me this is a barbaric, and uncouth way of thinking because there are alot of ways that we can iron out issues without blood having to be spilled, take for example the topic at hand: Uniform Park Fees For EA Residents, what you have failed to do is read the post, you have just read the comment section and concluded that Tanzania will be given the short end of the stick so the solution as always is to fight it out.

Reread the whole post again and maybe you will realise that boosting domestic tourism will help all of us and not just Nyangaus. Don't be so quick to judge, positive criticism helps, but what you always bring to the discussion table will only destroy us and not help anyone.

SMARTER.

 

[Nanu]

I think this is good. The East African citizens in their majority they don't the much in their earnings. It is also a good marketing tool to our parks. someone who visited, and seen, can market more better than someone who just reads through the news or watch it on TV. it is my hope that we will get more tourists and will earn more. I toured national parks in Kenya and I was charged same fee as Kenyans regardless that I hold a Tanzanian passport.

We are not such different.

One thing is for sure "change is coming" and EAC Federation is inevitable, we must therefore look to capitalise on it before it is signed by mid year 2010. This is not time to say, no no no, it will not happen until it actually happens!!!! Wake up countrymen and countrywomen and embrace the change and become part of it....

 

[Renegade]

Tanzania ina wapinzani?

kwa nini wote wamekaa kimya kuhusu EAC, tena wengine wanaunga mkono EAC!

disappointing.

Mlenge

Fanuel ,
Hii kitu mimi napinga sana naona tunaweza kuendelea bila hii siasa ya EAC, Ukiangalia kila Step kwenye hii EAC we are the losers. Je ni kweli kwamba tunahiitaji hii kwa sasa hivi? Ukiangalia kila corner ya Dunia wanaongelea Intergrations, sawa lakini katika hizi intergrations wananchi tunausishwa kwa kiasi gani? Nchi yenyewe hii kila mtu yuko busy na mambo yake mwisho wa siku yatafanywa maamuzi ambayo wengine watashangaa ilikuaje na lini?

 

[Wacha1]

Madereva wa magari ya kitalii kutoka Kenya wanalipa fweza nyingi mfano kwa mwezi kama wataingia na watalii as Kenyans watalipa kiasi cha $50 mara 30 ambayo ni sawa na $1500.00 lakini wakitumia dereva wa bongo bei ni poa au sivyo? Kwa hiyo tunapalilia biashara kwa Kenyans. They say charity begins at home. Hivi ni nani alilalamika kuhusu hizi fees? Je, walioamua kutelemsha hizi fees walizingatia maslahi ya Watanzania au Wakenya?

Kuhusu kuchelewa mipakani kwa kupata VISA hilo ni kosa la nani? Kwa nini wasiombe VISA huko watokako kwenye balozi zetu? Je, ni nani analalamika? Je, ni mpaka wa Kenya na Tanzania tu ndio unaosababisha ucheleweshaji wa watalii au ni mipaka yote? Je, walioamua kuanzisha huu mpango wa VISA kwa EAC walizingatia maslahi ya Watanzania au ni maslahi ya Nyang'au tu kila siku?

Je kwa nini huu utalii unaingizwa kichwa kichwa wakati sisi ndio tuatakiwa kuwa kwenye msatri wa mbele kwa agenda na sio hawa ndumila kuwili utoka Nairobi? Je, wanalurupushwa na wenye makampuni ya kitalii kutoka Kenya ambayo ni ya wazungu? Sijaona figure zozote za east Africans wanaotembelea mbuga za wanyama kwa wingi kuliko madereva na wabeba mizigo - who's behind this idiotic move?