Africa-Press – Angola. The Spanish professor of Anthropology and specialist in Cultural Tourism, Joan Riera, revealed, a few days ago, in Mbanza Kongo, that he is setting up a foundation, whose funds to be raised will be destined to projects aimed at creating infrastructure to promote the cultural and anthropological tourism in that historic city.
“We intend to attract money from large businessmen to restore the Historic Heritage of Mbanza Kongo, as a World Heritage Site”, said Joan Riera, for whom tourism must be supported by the private sector, with the State having to attend to other priorities, such as health and education.
Speaking as part of a visit to the former capital of the Kingdom of Congo, where he came into contact with various monuments and historical sites, Joan Riera defended the need to create an inclusive tourism exploitation system, in which tourists pay for services directly to the populations, so that they serve as guardians of the cultural heritage of the region.
“The rustic houses, roads and old cemeteries, as well as the abstract culture, intrinsic in the dances, music, language and rituals that existed before Christianization, are the main factors of attraction for national and foreign visitors”, he noted.
He mentioned that his foundation will also contribute to the improvement of basic sanitation in the city of Mbanza Kongo, by increasing the number of containers, in addition to carrying out actions aimed at making people aware of the respect and appreciation of traditional authorities, for being the guardians of tradition.
The specialist in Cultural Tourism also defended the need to classify the ancient buildings and temples of the region, as well as the valorization of the makers of the arts as artisans, as they constitute important elements of tourist attraction.
“I notice that there is a lack of ideas on how to attract tourists. That is why it is important to attract specialists in the appreciation of culture. For example, it is thought that the ruins of Kulumbimbi (the first church built south of the Sahara) constitute a monument.
Interesting thing, but in Europe there are more than a thousand of these churches. So it’s just a symbolic monument, but the most interesting are the people, the old houses and the mix between the old and the abstract culture. And this is what gives Mbanza Kongo its unique and exceptional value”, he stressed.
He recalled that the exceptional value of Mbanza Kongo, as a World Heritage Site, resides in the living culture, in the Kikongo language and in the art, which need to be valued, disseminated and explored.
“Tourists from Europe and Asia are interested in getting to know the living culture, but for that it is necessary to create a protocol of action. The meeting with traditional authorities and the exposure of local music and dance can attract more tourists with financial power. , willing to mobilize resources to leverage tourism”, he explained.
Joan Riera, who visited Mbanza Kongo for the first time in 2018, said that she had already created a travel and tourism agency in Lu-anda, with the aim of helping the process of publicizing and preserving the Historic Center of Mban-za Kongo.
Joan Riera has over 25 years of experience working in cultural rehabilitation in Africa, in countries such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Tourists praise preservation of culture
Swiss tourists, who recently visited the city of Mbanza Kongo, praised the way in which the culture, the Kikongo language and the rituals inherited from the ancestors are being preserved.
Upon arrival, Alex Rechstelner and Claudia Allheilig were received by the traditional authorities of Lumbu (Customs Court), who, as is customary in the region, performed a welcome ritual at the cemetery of the ancient sovereigns of the Kingdom of Congo. “They must continue to zealously preserve the cultural traits that characterize the Angolan, especially those secular traits, prior to the arrival of the colonizers. On the other hand, there is a perfectly preserved nature around the city of Mbanza Kongo, which is very positive, because we have seen several cases of fires and droughts in Europe, due to climate change. Therefore, continue to maintain this afforestation and conserve nature”, they advised.
The two tourists confessed that they knew little about the Kingdom of Kongo, having therefore taken advantage of their presence in Angola to visit the former capital of the then monarchy and see up close the monuments and sites, such as the Kulumbimbi, the Yala Nkuwu tree and the cemetery of the Old Kings.
“We have been in Angola since August 12th and we intend to stay for a month. We have already visited the provinces of Huíla, Benguela, Cuanza-Sul and now Zaire. With this visit we will be able to disclose the potential and areas of private investment in Europe, since that the peaceful conditions favor the development of tourism. There is a lot of natural beauty and interesting places to visit. In short, there is a lot of tourist potential”, said Rechstelner.
Claudia Allheilig revealed, on the other hand, that she faced difficulties in obtaining a visa for Angola, having, for this reason, advised the authorities to create mechanisms that can facilitate the process, especially for tourists.
“It was not easy to get a visa for Angola, something that can be improved. We also had difficulties traveling outside the cities, due to the bad conditions of the roads, which require the use of well-equipped vehicles”, he said, having also regretted the quality of hotels in the most remote places where they have been.
Lack of hotels
The tourist guide of the company “Pure & Authentic Tourism”, Fernando Cabral, who outlined the itinerary of foreign tourists to Mbanza Kongo and other historical points in the country, said that they suggested improvements in the offer of the hotel sector, catering, transport and communication.
“It is important to have access to the telephone network in any part of the country, because in case of failure, it causes huge losses to our business. Imagine that you need to contact someone by email, send a photo, receive a pro forma invoice, or knowing the price of this or that, when you can’t get it due to lack of communication, your business and opportunity fail”, he said.
The coordinator of the Nucleus of Traditional Authorities of Lumbu encouraged national and foreign businessmen to build more hotels in the region to meet demand.
“I have always encouraged entrepreneurs to invest in the hotel sector in Mbanza Kongo, because we receive many visits and the lack of quality rooms harms the Heritage. , which started the construction of an imposing hotel, but the work has been paralyzed since 2016. We do not know the reasons, but the government could seek a financial solution for its completion”, he said.
It should be noted that, since the reopening of national borders, last June, closed to control the expansion of Covid-19, the city of Mbanza Kongo has already received close to 100 foreign tourists.
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