Centred around cultural heritage tourism in Africa, it draws on a range of interdisciplinary perspectives to examine the challenges faced by African countries in preserving their cultural heritage and promoting tourism development, such as tourism, culture, heritage, geography, anthropology, sociology, history and global studies. Mostly written by experts from Africa, the book compries 18 chapters and falls into three main categories.
The first category is tangible cultural heritage tourism, encompassing several common types: rural heritage tourism, agri-heritage tourism, culinary heritage tourism and archaeological heritage tourism.
In addition, Africa’s tangible cultural heritage has also given rise to some colonial heritage tourism, including urban tourism and dark tourism due to its colonial history. As for heritage preservation and cultural tourism development on the African continent, European colonialism has been both an hindrance and a driver. Joao Sarmento condemns the actions of European colonialists, who desecrated and plundered Africa’s heritage. As a result, numerous important African cultural artefacts are present in museums across Europe and North America. Gustav Visser points out that capitals and some urban areas often possess colonial heritage, but many heritage sites are spatially inconsistent with points of entry due to changes in the postcolonial era and urban development. Phillip Stone believes that a significant number of Africa’s darkest historical acts—murder, war, terrorism, and genocide—can be traced back to the influence of European colonialism. Consequently, Africa’s dark tourism industry seeks to uncover the existential significance of life by presenting the poignant narratives of sorrow and death experienced by others.
Tourism is consuming cultural resources which are disappearing, thereby negatively impacting indigenous groups through indigenous cultural heritage tourism. Ikechukwu O. Ezeuduji recommends some sustainable forms of heritage tourism through case studies of cultural events, arguing that these events have had a positive impact on Africa’s tourism development in economic, social, cultural, political and environmental aspects.
A Guest Editorial