River Dolphins In Bid to Renew Northeast Cambodian Economy
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www.mot.gov.kh The last 80 or so river dolphins in the Mekong River are at the heart of an ambitious development programme to tackle poverty and attract tens of thousands of visitors to two of the poorest provinces of Cambodia.
The Mekong River Discovery Trail Project will draw visitors to view the endangered fresh water dolphin which lives in 10 deep water natural pools in a 190-km stretch of the Mekong River, mostly between the quiet provincial capitals of Kratie and Stung Treng.
The main objective of the Discovery Trail is poverty alleviation. About 50% of all households in Stung Treng and 30% of those in Kratie live on less than US$1 a day. “The Mekong River Discovery Trail Project aims to bring about sustainable pro-poor tourism that helps develop Northeast Cambodia,” says Dr Harsh Varma, Director of Development Assistance Department of the World Tourism Organization.
While Cambodia’s tourism arrival statistics show growth in excess of 20% a year, it is not equitably distributed, says Ms Anne-Maria Makela, Senior Tourism Advisor for SNV Netherlands Development Organisation. “Too much of it goes to Angkor and Siem Reap. We want to bring more communities into the tourism picture, either as employees or as suppliers to the tourism industry.”
In addition to 80,000 domestic tourists, the Cambodian government says that about 10,800 international visitors, mostly backpackers, visited Kratie in 2006, 35% up on the previous year. It estimates that 4,000 visited Stung Treng, an increase of 20%. Nearly all stayed in guest houses for less than US$5 a night and took motos, bicycles, motorbikes and longtail boats to see the dolphins, which must break surface every few minutes for air.
By seeking out the dolphins, backpackers have indicated the potential to the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism, which is now mobilising money and expertise from SNV and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
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