Ecotourism benefits: 150 times higher than the budget of the Ministry of Tourism

Ecotourism continues to be on a roll because the number of tourists and ecologists visiting Madagascar keeps on increasing. Last year, according to figures shown by a bimonthly newsletter of Conservation International, about 225,000 tourists visited national parks in the country. Those tourists generated $ 260 million in revenue or approximately 520 billion MGA, which represents nearly 150 times higher than the budget of the Ministry of Tourism for 2012.

This simple comparison demonstrates how tourism and its different branches are still far from being the priority of the current government. The issue is not new. However, in ecotourism, 31 000 jobs were created in 2011. At the same time, it is generally known that the country has a big problem concerning employment because there are currently more than 500 000 young job hunters on the labor market. In addition to that, 25% of the population is underemployed. There is also the problem of people doing inadequate jobs, representing 42% of the labor force, and of course, the jobs created in the informal sector where conditions are often difficult and precarious.

So, in order to solve these problems, the government should increase the budget allowance granted to some of its departments that generate more profits than others like the Ministry of tourism and Environment. Usually, employments in those departments are formal and provide a good career path.