TOURISM COULD BE LUNGA'S ECONOMIC BEDROCK

Watching school pupils on our national television learning under a mango tree at Matipa Primary School in Lunga and seeing them being taught by a volunteer school leaver left me with a huge lump in the throat. May be this is better left to competent administrators to contemplate.

 I remembered an argument I had with one foreign  researcher last year.

The young researcher based in Lunga once doubted that there would be little or no meaningful development that could take place on these islands. He argued that the geographical location, seasonal flooding and remoteness made it difficult for any meaningful investment.

As we say in my language,” uwikwite atila ubwali ubo kateule,” meaning when you are full, you discount the urgency of serving a meal.

The world is focusing on the tourism industry today. Zambia’s marketing language is all about attracting tourists. It’s the hot topic in many circles considering economic improvement.

Question is; what do tourists want? Why are they visiting places? Are all places they visit naturally special or have been made so by investment? Clarity in answering these seemingly easy questions is vital.

Strictly speaking, the complete answer  to the questions above is that  tourism involves attractions which include natural, cultural and man-made.

Talking about natural attractions, Lunga is endowed with hundreds of bird species. Some of these birds, like the Shoebill stock is only found in this area and a few other places in the whole world.

Lunga is home to droves of varied species of animals such as the black lechwe.  This is in fact why part of Lunga is in the Bangweulu wetlands game reserve catchment area.

We have a mass of water ideal for fishing expeditions due to numerous fish species, cruising, many other water sports such as mansukano (water racing), yachting, surfing and diving.

The natural appearance of lake Chale alone can attract thousands of tourists. What about the famous Luapula river?

We can proudly talk about cultural tourism too. People want to know how other human beings live and what they believe in. The people of Lunga have a unique culture that is sale-able just like any other. They have an interesting history which is being epitomized by their annual traditional ceremony that takes place at the end of June.

Their cultural artistic skills such as mat weaving, canoe carpentry, fishing methods and clay pot kneading are just some of the underrated attractions. Mats woven in Lunga have no match in terms of artistic taste and appearance.

Lunga can provide village and backpacking tours just like any other. Some of the islets within Lunga can pass for film making.

All that Lunga needs is a consistent and aggressive marketing. The area has all it takes for a number one tourist attraction area when investment is lobbied from both government and private sectors.

Fiji  for example, is cashing in more on its water than on anything else. Investors are putting up resorts along its shores so they can attract tourists who use resort activities such as vacations, weddings, conferences, seminars, etc. 

To say an area cannot be developed is to limit one’s thinking assuming that since they have achieved a certain level of development, the earth has stopped rotating. 

If people can create artificial islands and make them attractive, what more a natural and well stocked area with an abundance of natural resources and a people?

The only limit is in a mind that chooses to close doors to ideas and the resolute determination of a people to achieve that which they have set to. Someday, when we all realize the need to work together and that no person is gifted with the monopoly of knowledge, Lunga will actualize its potential.

Lunga has budding tourism possibilities which simply need to be exploited. Sooner than later, the world will flock to these little-known islands and dine in numbers on some well nurtured Nsalushi islet or fresh waters of Nsawa.