Share Editor’s note: Around the world, 2020 has been turbulent, challenging, and a year truly unlike any other. This article, reviewing the period from January to April, is the first in a three-part series that looks back at some of the important events and developments that unfolded in Eritrea over the past year. Parts II and III will be published in subsequent editions of Eritrea Profile.
January
The first month of 2020 in Eritrea began like other years, with festivities. In Asmara, colorful cultural and musical performances were held at Cinema Roma on New Year’s Eve. President Isaias Afwerki also made a public statement conveying his best wishes to Eritreans for the year ahead.
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In this article, I would like to share my personal opinion about one industry for development that is so often discussed: tourism. Before we attempt to invest heavily in tourism, we should ask these questions: What kind of tourism do we want to see in Eritrea?
Do we have adequate infrastructure for sustainable tourism? If not, what can we learn from other countries that are waking up to the devastating and irreparable damage mass tourism has inflicted to the land, the environment and biodiversity? Do we want to see ostentatious five-star hotels, overcrowded sea-sides, plastic bottles, and piles of rubbish left by careless tourists on our seashores or the development of a sustainable, environmentally and traditionally blended, tourism in Eritrea?