Page 28 - Destination Risk and Resilience Manual-Namibia

RISK REGISTRY

3.3 Key risks and potential options for action for the Erongo Region

While Namibia faces numerous risks in terms of the Municipality) must collaborate to increase the visi-
tourism industry, there are other risks that are particu- bility of both national and local police so that visitors
lar to the Erongo region. These range from droughts, are assured of their security. In addition, the existing
and flooding, to east winds, poaching and pollution. tourism protection unit must be beefed up in terms
From the workshops held in both Windhoek and of manpower, vehicles and equipment so that they are
Swakopmund as well as the various surveys and inter- able to effectively carry out their mandate.
views carried out in the study, a number of these risks
were pointed out and potential options for action were In the modern age, tourists generally require and
suggested (see Table 3). expect to visit destinations with clean environments
and where the hosts show consciousness in protecting
One of the major risks that were identified includ- the environment. Where such consciousness is not
ed damaged tourism infrastructure due to flooding apparent or shown, and environmental rules and reg-
which occurs in some of the areas within the Erongo ulations are weak or not implemented, the condition
Region especially during the rainy season. In a climate of the environment may be negatively affected by lit-
environment where extreme weather patterns have tering, hence causing harm to the environment. A de-
become more frequent, flooding and the subsequent graded environment will, in turn, result in the decrease
damage to infrastructure that is key to tourism has in visitor numbers and this will also have a negative
also become common. To enhance the resilience of the impact on revenue generation and the general attrac-
destination regarding this challenge, there is a need tiveness of the destination. For the Erongo Region,
for the government and local authorities to identify, dealing with this risk entails increasing the awareness
beforehand, the flood-prone areas and then design and of the existing laws so that both the local population
develop climate-proof infrastructure so that disrup- and the visitors are aware of what is expected of them
tion to the tourism industry will be minimised. in safeguarding the environment. In addition, the rel-
evant authorities must strictly enforce the applicable
The other identified major risks include loss of bio- laws. Further, the significance of Eco-Awards must be
diversity/wildlife in the destination due to extreme increased, rewarding those businesses that operate in
weather events such as droughts, which is also a result a manner that preserves the environment. A combina-
of an increase in extreme weather events. In general, tion of these actions may keep the destination more
Namibia is a dry country. However, the increased fre- environmentally-friendly and in turn increase visitor
quency of dry spells in the country results in water numbers to the region.
scarcity and the loss of biodiversity. Consequently,
this is likely to reduce the number of visitors to the While visitors are attracted to the Erongo Region by
country. One way of dealing with this risk is for the the existence of beautiful scenery and diverse wildlife,
government to inaugurate a clear policy on rural and such an attraction is endangered through poaching
urban water harvesting. This will potentially result in activities which have the potential to deplete wildlife.
the destination harvesting adequate water to meet its To deal with this challenge, the Erongo Region, in col-
requirements, guaranteeing visitors access to water for laboration with the national government, must ca-
the duration of their stay. pacitate the existing anti-poaching units to effectively
carry out their jobs. This entails training them (includ-
Visitors generally shy away from places that are prone ing refresher courses), giving them vehicles to increase
to crimes or have a reputation for high crime rates. For their reach, improving their technological capacity
tourism, a perception of high crime rates creates a neg- (e.g., using drones for monitoring/tracking), and giving
ative image of the destination. For the Erongo Region them the right weapons to combat poaching given
specifically, a perception of high crime means that that some of the poachers will be armed. Preserving
visitors will avoid the region for other places perceived the very wildlife that attracts visitors will go a long
to be less affected, hence decreasing visitor numbers way in increasing the resilience of the destination.
and the potential to generate income. To attend to
this risk and reduce the negative impact on tourist
numbers (and income), the national government, in
collaboration with the municipalities in the Erongo
Region (e.g., Swakopmund Municipality, Walvis Bay

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