26 Oct 2022

 Intangible cultural heritage is embodied in practices, expressions, knowledge and skills as well as in associated objects and cultural spaces.

Speaking at the Africa Tourism Leadership Forum Cultural (ATLF) night in Gaborone on Tuesday, the acting deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture, Moreetsi Bogosi, said this global wealth of traditions had become one of the principal motivations for travel.

He said tourists travelled the world seeking to engage with new cultures and experience the global variety of performing arts, handicrafts, rituals, cuisines and interpretations of nature and the universe.

Bogosi said the benefits of closer links between culture and tourism went beyond the economic returns. He said travelling to experience the culture of others also meant gaining a direct appreciation of cultural diversity, establishing new cultural ties and helping to keep the cultural heritage alive.

He said they always got excited when they hosted nations for conferences such as the ATLF because such gave them an opportunity to shine the rich culture through music and dance, food and traditional drinks.

Bogosi said they wanted their guests to leave Botswana with a great sense of belonging so they could come back.

He said fostering the responsible use of this living heritage for tourism purposes provided new employment opportunities, helped alleviate poverty, curb rural drift migration among the young and marginally-employed and nurture a sense of pride among communities.

“Tourism also offers a powerful incentive for preserving and enhancing intangible cultural heritage as the revenue it generates could be channelled back into initiatives to aid its long term survival and true partnerships between communities and the tourism and heritage sectors could only occur is all sides develop a genuine appreciation for each other’s aspirations and values,” he said.He said tourism stakeholders need to acquire an awareness of cultural heritage management practices, while heritage managers must endeavour to comprehend the complex phenomenon of tourism and its modus operandi.

Bogosi said through mutual understanding, both could build on their shared interest in cultural assets in close consultation with local communities, the ultimate bearers of mankind’s intangible cultural legacy

He said the value of heritage based tourism products exceeded all immediate and particular economic benefits they provided. Ends