link to article: https://www.independent.co.uk/stop-the-illegal-wildlife-trade/uk-red-list-african-ecosystems-b1866312.html
As cases of Covid-19 rise, including the Delta variant and other unknown variants of the virus, the UK has continued to shut down it’s systems of travel and shut it’s citizens in the country to prevent the further transmission of the virus. To do this, they’ve implemented a stop-light system. They put countries on a list, either under Red, Yellow, or Green. Essentially, when the ‘light’ is red travel from country to country is restricted to only certain people. When the light is ‘yellow’ travel is heavily discouraged, however it is permitted to those who really wish to do so. For the UK, this is a solid idea. It prevents the spread and transmission of COVID-19 to the best of the countries ability, keeping the countries numbers low and keeping it’s citizens healthy. However, there’s an unknown consequence to this, the tourism industry in Sub-Saharan Africa. Africa’s ‘national parks’ rely heavily on the income they make from tourists, because of under funding. The UK makes up for roughly half of this tourism, meaning at least half of these funds are now not being raised. Not only does this affect conservation efforts, keeping conservation efforts from being able to safe their wildlife, but it also affects Africa’s economy, especially during a time of economic crisis in many of Africa’s countries (like Yemen, who is currently experiencing a years long famine with no end in sight, and only further suffers from economic turmoil).
For a first world country, UK is taking all of the supposed proper steps to keep their country safe. But I have to wonder if in a perfect world, would it be the solution for the UK to lift their travel bans and reintroduce their aspect of tourism to Sub-Saharan Africa? Yes, it would mean a potential rise in deaths and hospitalizations for the country of itself. But during Africa’s growing economic crisis, is putting countries like Rwanda and Kenya on the red list a good idea? They’re heavily under vaccinated, have no real way of testing for covid, and yet, during an age of growing climate crisis and rising extinction levels, wildlife conservation area’s like Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park are crucial to the saving of the land and animals on our planet. For many, this becomes a question of do we save us, or the planet?
On a global level, many countries are affected by this issue. Tourism industries are suffering greatly worldwide, leading to a lack of funds to support those tourist businesses and effectively cutting them off. But most of those countries are able to sustain those industries at least partially through a domestic level, such as National Parks in the US, that can sustain themselves through increased domestic travel. But again, as Africa suffers economically, there are very few that have the funds, the time, or the ability to currently visit a national park. This is why Africa and UK’s interstate interaction in this specific instance is so crucial to the survival of Africa’s wildlife conservation and their economy.