Connect with us

Culture

Tanzania cuts park fee for East African neighbours. Here’s why

Published

on

In the bid to encourage more traffic from neighbouring countries at its parks, Tanzanian authorities have reduced fees for East Africans.

Tanzania’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism said it is targeting visitors from the East African Community (EAC) member states to visit wildlife parks and historical sites.

Under the current arrangement, adult EAC citizens will now pay Tsh10,000 ($ 4.2), the same fee adult Tanzanians will also be charged.

According to the minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Dr. Pindi Chana, the Tanzanian government will also focus on meetings and conference visitors through exhibitions, conferences, and other tours.

Dr. Chana revealed that the initial step is to work with EAC Secretariat in Arusha to harmonize travel restrictions and movements of people within the EAC bloc under the umbrella of the East African Tourism Platform (EATF).

Tanzania is a country with many tourist attractions. Approximately 38 percent of Tanzania’s land area is set aside in protected areas for conservation. Travel and tourism contributed 17.5 percent of Tanzania’s gross domestic product in 2016.

The minister argued that lowering fees and providing hosting incentives for conferences will help attract five million tourists worth $6 billion, the target set for 2025 under the Five Year Tourism Development Plan now under implementation.

Roughly 368,000 tourists visited Tanzania from January to April 2022. The tourism sector has shown signs of recovery after being strongly hit by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Previous to the outbreak, the number of tourists arriving in the country followed an upward tendency and reached 1.5 million in 2019.

Culture

Davido’s ‘Unavailable’ achieves milestone with 100 million views on YouTube, Spotify

Published

on

Nigeria’s Afrobeats sensation, David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has landed another milestone after his hit single, “Unavailable’, surpassed 100 million streams on both YouTube and Spotify.

According to a release on Wednesday by his management team, the track which features South African artist, Musa Keys, also hit a major milestone as its music video crossed 100 million views on YouTube.

The hit track which was released on April 11, 2023, as part of Davido’s chart-topping album “Timeless”, grew to become the most streamed Afrobeats song of 2023 and received high praise, including being named by Rihanna as her favorite single of the year.

“The single, Unavailable, has also surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify to become Davido’s first single to achieve this feat,” the statement said.

“With the music video surpassing 100 million views, it becomes Davido’s fourth song to surpass the 100 million streams mark following his 2017 hit releases ‘If’, ‘Fall’, and ‘FIA’.

“Following the success of Unavailable, Davido released a remix EP that includes collaborations with Jamaican Dancehall star Sean Paul and American rapper Latto.

“Described by Rihanna as her favourite single of 2023, Davido’s Unavailable was the most streamed Afrobeats song released in 2023.

“Additionally, the single recently earned a SNEP Gold plaque after reaching 15 million streams in France, cementing its status as a global hit,” it added.

Continue Reading

Culture

Cameroon opens museum dedicated to oldest, influential kingdoms

Published

on

The Cameroonian government has inaugurated a historical museum which is dedicated to honouring its oldest and most influential kingdoms.

Known as the Royal Bomaun Kings Museum, it was inaugurated on Saturday, April 13, in Foumban, the Bauman Kingdom’s traditional capital, located in the western part of the country.

The edifice which is next to the royal palace of the Bamouns, has been described as an architectural masterpiece, pays homage to the emblem of the Bamoun – a double-headed snake, a spider, and a double-mounted gong, and houses over 10,000 historical artefacts most of whom are century-old objets d’art.

It was inaugurated by King Nabil Mbombo Njoya, the 20th ruler of the Bamouns, alongside Culture Minister, Pierre Ismaël Bidoung Mkpatt.

Foremost Cameroonian historian and anthropologist, Professor Francois Bingono Bingono, who was among the visitors at the opening of the museum, spoke glowingly of the project.

“I was privileged to visit the museum. I can tell you that it is not only the culture of western Cameroon, the culture of the Bamouns that is celebrated inside those walls.

“I recognized the culture of the forest, meaning the culture of the inhabitants of southern Cameroon, a heavily forested region.

“I also recognized the cultures of the regions of East, Centre and South Cameroon. One can also come across the cultural heritage of Loum, of the Hauts-Plateaux department, and that of northern Cameroon.

“This museum is the ideal place for those who wish to go back to their roots or take a deep dive into the culture heritage of Cameroon.

“You can see valuable items inside such as thrones and chairs used by the King. Really anything that has to do with the Bamoun dynasty from the first rulers to the current monarch.

“This is patrimony that is handed down to future generations. For the Bamouns, it represents an achievement and a celebration of their culture. For Cameroonians at large, it is part of their history.”

The Bamoun Kingdom is one of the oldest in sub-saharan Africa with historians dating its creation to the late XIVth century.

Continue Reading

EDITOR’S PICK

Metro9 hours ago

‘Reconsider your anti-people policies, they are causing hardship, insecurity in Nigeria’— PDP tells Tinubu

Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has called on President Bola Tinubu to consider what it calls...

Sports1 day ago

Top European, Asian clubs on alert as Super Eagles keeper set to make contract decision

Some top clubs in Europe and Asia have been put on alert as Super Eagles and Chippa United goalkeeper, Stanley...

VenturesNow1 day ago

IMF says South Africa needs to do more to cut spending, lower debt-to-GDP ratio

A top official from the International Monetary Fund has revealed that South Africa needs to do more to cut spending...

Politics1 day ago

Burkina Faso expels 3 French diplomats over ‘subversive activities’

According to a letter quoted by Reuters on Thursday, three French diplomats have been sent back to France by Burkina...

Tech1 day ago

Nigeria’s MAX partners Ghana’s Kofa in e-bike financing deal

Nigeria’s electric vehicle solutions provider, MAX, has announced striking a partnership deal with Ghana’s innovator in energy networks, Kofa, that...

Metro1 day ago

Zambia asks EU to help strengthen its democratic initiatives ahead of 2026 elections

The Zambian government has called on the European Union (EU) to help in strengthening democratic initiatives in the country as...

Metro1 day ago

Nigeria destined to become major global economy under Tinubu— VP Shettima

Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, has predicted that the country is destined to become a major economic force in the...

VenturesNow1 day ago

Nigeria’s central bank insists depleting external reserves not due to Naira defence

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the big drop in the country’s foreign exchange reserves was not due...

Tech2 days ago

African Guarantee Fund partners Nordic Development Fund to launch green finance in Nigeria

The African Guarantee Fund (AGF) has teamed up with the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) to launch a green finance fund...

Sports2 days ago

Ethiopia’s Lemma, Kenya’s Obiri give Africa double podium finish at Boston Marathon

Ethiopia’s long distance runner, Sisay Lemma, and Kenyan female marathon sensation, Hellen Obiri, teamed up to give Africa a double...

Trending