Uganda`s government is to introduce tourism legislation in support of the UN Millennium Development Goals as Uganda President, his excellency Yoweri Kaguta Museveni revealed in his keynote address to the 4th IIPT African Conference on Peace through Tourism.

One of the key constraints to tourism development has been the weak law and regulations to guide and enforce proper development in the industry. The role of the law in the sustainable development of tourism and poverty alleviation is critical. The legislation should enshrine policies that are pro poor and underpin a coherent institutional framework and supportive infrastructure for the private sector, the President said.

I therefore urge the policy makers to incorporate principles and regulations in the new legislation that will enhance the achievement of the goals of PEAP and synchronize with the U.N. Millennium Development Goals.
I specifically would like to sign legislation that empowers the local communities to take advantage of the opportunities to benefit from tourism and enshrine the principles of sustainable tourism development.
Finally, as we grapple with the challenges of tourism development, we should not loose focus of the pre condition of peace in fostering the growth of the travel and tourism industry. I wish to reaffirm my government’s commitment to the entire pacification of the country, to the maintenance of law and order, the provision of support infrastructure and sound economic management principles to facilitate the growth of the tourism industry, the President continued.

The catalyst for this legislation has been a report recently released by the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Center (Sustainable Tourism CRC) of Australia, a consortium of leading tourism academics from 11 Australian Universities y the Australian government. Research for their report on Tourism and the UN Millennium Development Goals was funded by the Netherlands Development Agency SNV.

IIPT President Louis D’Amore said: “We were honored to facilitate the introduction of the Sustainable Tourism CRC and the Uganda Ministry of Tourism, Trade and Industry with a view to introducing this milestone legislation as a significant concrete outcome of the 4th IIPT African Conference on Peace through Tourism.”

A special “Ministers Round Table” on Expanding the Contribution of Tourism to Poverty Reduction and the UN Millennium Development Goals will bring together Tourism Ministers from other countries taking part in the conference with a view to encouraging this important legislation in other countries of Africa. Several donor agencies including the SNV, UNDP, USAID and World Bank, as well as UNEP will take part in the Round Table to discuss and recommend public – private sector – donor agency – NGO – Civil Society collaborative strategies to move from legislation – towards implementation.