Tourism and the Wildlife Economy: WTM Africa 2026 Panel
The World Travel Market (WTM) Africa 2026 was a hive of activity as we interacted with a wide range of tourism industry stakeholders, including tour guides, crafters, hotels, reserves, national parks, airlines, and others from across Africa and around the world. Amid this hustle and bustle, we had a valuable opportunity to highlight a critical dimension of tourism that arguably drives the industry and brings many of these businesses and stakeholders together - tourism and the wildlife economy. Some say that wildlife tourism is the biggest driver of tourism revenues, particularly in Africa.
About the panel session
At this year's conference, the African Wildlife Economy Institute (AWEI) hosted a panel discussion on a white paper by Responsible Tourism titled "Tourism and the wildlife economy: consumptive and non-consumptive tourism, community benefit, and conservation success." The panel, moderated by AWEI Deputy Director Dr Wiseman Ndlovu, explored the range of ways in which tourism can benefit conservation and the communities that live with wildlife and bear the opportunity costs.
Dr Ndlovu introduced the newly published WTM Africa White Paper: Tourism and the Wildlife Economy in Africa (co -authored by Dilys Roe, Sue Snyman & Harold Goodwin, April 2026), highlighting its core messages: wildlife as an economic asset, the limitations of over-reliance on photographic tourism (lessons from COVID-19), the need for meaningful community participation, and tourism’s place within a broader wildlife economy that includes hunting, game meat, and other sustainable uses.
Discussions addressed the integration of local knowledge and values, equitable distribution of benefits, structural barriers faced by communities, diversification (including consumptive tourism), and cultural self-respect. The conversation was grounded in real-world experiences from marine tourism, savanna protected areas, community conservancies, and urban/rural tourism interfaces.
Panel A: conservation experts on benefits and inclusion
Dr Wiseman Ndlovu opened the panel discussions with three direct and interlinked questions:
- What is the role of tourism in wildlife conservation and the economy?
- How does tourism relate to the wider economic activities in conservation in both consumptive and non-consumptive uses?
- Who benefits and how? What are the risks to conservation if these benefits trickle down to communities?”
The panellists responded with candour, lived experience, and constructive critique. Several powerful themes and direct quotes emerged:
Oscar Mthimkhulu, Kruger National Park: from labour providers to co-owners
Oscar Mthimkhulu (Kruger National Park) emphasised that these conversations are deeply shaped by socio-economic realities on the ground. He described it as a two-way street:
“It is important to see that [fortress] conversation is a socio-economic constraint in the way it affects communities. When we talk as organisations, we see how these issues affect what we do. But it’s a two-way street. We need to hear community stories, their livelihoods and how they relate to the environment.”
He challenged the sector to move beyond positioning communities merely as labour providers:
“From a community benefit perspective, we need to focus on partnership. We position the community as labour providers rather than co-owners. That’s one of the biggest issues we have.”
Oscar highlighted the visible disconnect when tourists pass through communities en route to see the Big Five in National Parks that rely heavily on photographic tourism:
“We see visitors going through communities to see the Big 5 – we need to think how can these communities benefit from wildlife safaris, particularly in the National Parks which rely on photographic tourism. How do we share this experience?”
He stressed the importance of genuine inclusion in decision-making and management, even when skills gaps exist, and called for deeper understanding at the household level:
“If I work, I get a salary not a benefit. Salaries and income should not be a benefit. We need to understand the community at the household level. Who are we? How can we define our community and have our own direction?”
Oscar also pointed to practical actions already underway, such as SANParks community forums for engagement and idea solicitation, while advocating for youth mentorship clubs in environmentally sensitive areas to give young people “a seat at the table” and build bridges. He noted that Africa is blessed with resources and room for expanded sustainable use, including the harvesting of medicines already permitted under utilisation panels and guidelines. Community exposure to wildlife, he argued, remains hugely important for fostering stewardship.
Wilfred Chivell, Marine Dynamics: The economic value of a living shark
Wilfred Chivell (Marine Dynamics & Dyer Island Conservation Trust) urged the audience to put themselves in the position of communities living in and around protected areas:
“We need to put ourselves into the seats of the people and the communities. What do they need? Too many people are moving into nature, but we need to think of the people living in these natural areas.”
He shared the powerful economic multiplier of non-consumptive marine tourism and the stark contrast between a dead shark (short-term export value of roughly R1,000) and a living shark that sustains 130 direct jobs, 2,000 dependents, 40,000 annual visitors, local supply chains, education programmes, conservation funding, and international marketing worth millions. He also noted the operational challenges of marine conservation, where government management of the ocean (and external pressures such as Antarctic dynamics and overfishing - with more than 80% of Great White Sharks killed) makes protection difficult, and linked overfishing pressures to broader issues around hunting the Big Five.
Isabel Wolf-Gillespie, Tswehe: past the consumptive tourism debate
Isabel Wolf-Gillespie (Tswehe) addressed the polarising nature of consumptive tourism debates and called for a more nuanced, values-based approach:
“Fragmented landscapes lead to tension. I’m in a landscape of both conservation and hunting. This shouldn’t be a polarising debate of either or, it needs to be a dialogue and understanding of the sensitivities on either side.”
She argued for expanding the value of tourism and wildlife beyond purely monetary terms:
“We have to expand the value of tourism beyond the economic. If we only give a fish a monetary value it decreases its value. It limits the potential of what more we can gain. Consumptive tourism is polarising – people are either for or against. We need to be careful if consumptive tourism considers monetary value only. What is the value of the species in the wider landscape to a nation or culture?”
Isabel reflected on the historical baggage of conservation and the need for reconciliation:
“Historically conservation doesn’t have a great name. It’s colonial roots mean it was for the privileged few and is laden with history. We need reconciliation and collaboration.”
She emphasised that the way we approach these issues depends on our biases, the need for education to address complex conservation challenges, and the importance of creating space for different views in the room rather than talking past one another. She also spoke to the complexity of open versus fenced landscapes where elephants and other wildlife interact with neighbouring communities (e.g., cattle posts in Botswana), and the personal realities of living with wildlife.
Panel B: community voices on dignity and partnership
Additional contributions from Panel B (including Glynn O’Leary, Tracy Kwaai, and ML Rwebandira) emphasised income generation through lodges and community partnerships, the transformative power of responsible tourism in building dignity and cultural pride and the importance of moving beyond viewing communities as passive beneficiaries. ML Rwebandira emphasised the importance of training community members, citing the example of Tom Karemire, a former night watchman who became a successful village hotelier and homestay operator. It was a deeply moving story about the early doubts about his family’s willingness to embrace the homestay, doubts that evaporated quickly. Today, Tom’s tomb proudly carries the inscription: “A Tourism Enthusiastic Person.” This single story captured the essence of responsible tourism, delivering genuine dignity, cultural pride, and long-term stewardship. Thus, turning local people into passionate conservation partners rather than mere beneficiaries.
The session successfully wove together practitioner experience, community voices, and policy-relevant insights, providing balanced coverage of both consumptive and non-consumptive approaches, aligning directly with the White Paper’s call for diversified, resilient and equitable wildlife economies, and avoiding unproductive polarisation. Global success stories (Fiji coral-reef tourism, Mexico’s San Ignacio Lagoon and Puerto Pirámides whale watching, and cases from Argentina and Baja California) illustrated proven transitions and the superior economic and conservation performance of well-managed non-consumptive models.
Next year’s panel, chaired again by Dr Wiseman Ndlovu, will focus on examples of the many ways that communities living near the wildlife estate can benefit from it.
