Ethiopia has huge eco-tourism potential. It is blessed with natural tourist sites such high towering chains of mountain peaks, swarm of hills, mountain roof-top plateaus, intermountain riverine valleys, plains, deep gorges, rifts, lakes, rivers and other attractions. The economic significance of these attractions is associated with geological and cultural landscape of particular area. Such sites can be classified as geo-tourism and geo-tourism can have diverse product lines depending on the specific features of the ecological environment.
Natural wonders are everywhere in Ethiopia and this has been witnessed by many visitors. Ras Dashin Mountain, Gerealta Mountains, Sof Omar cave, Lake Tana, Lake Ziway, Lake Abiyata, Ziquala, Afar depression are among the innumerable natural tourist attraction that the country has yet to utilize them fully. According to the magazine published by Tigray Culture and Tourism Bureau, the Ethiopian mountains have diverse biological wealth of unique flora and fauna with life supporting ecosystem of paramount significance. The above mentioned mountains, lakes and rivers with the recovering ecosystem embrace endemic animals, birds and plant species. These precious blessings have massive role in enhancing the tourism sector.
The eccentric geological formations and associated weather characters of high altitude areas offer unique opportunity to visitors to view sunset and sunrise as well as to watch clouds from soaring islands of mountain peaks. The magnificent mountains have enormous potential of luring independent mountain climbers, self-sufficient trekkers, backpack explorers, retreat workshop organizers, scientists and students in various fields of study. These type tourists would want to explore the Ethiopian culture and way of life as well.
Hence, Bird watching, star viewing in deep dark skies during night times, parachute flights over mountain gorges and film shooting and other documentary recording in astonishing active basaltic of Erta Ale are also some of the most lucrative earnings in geo-tourism business activities. The geological feature of these mountains, active volcanoes, lakes and valleys with all their incredible landscape formations, scenic and biotic assets, combined with cultural values and practices of the community has profound significance in branding the attractions, associated activities and service facilities as geo-tourism package of the destination areas.
Promoting mountain blessings and delivering tourism products of the mountain ecologies by many mountain communities have now become a popular business in the commercial circuit of the global tourism industry.
For instance, the Adwa Mountains constitute one of the most significant environmental and cultural reserves, strewn with unique and significant natural geological monuments of high towering mountain-chains known as geo-tops. The mountains have kept an astounding heroic history of Ethiopians who defeated Italian colonialists in the 19th century. However, the mountains have not been promoted and developed to contribute in the eco-tourism sector.
With its immense eco-tourism potentials, Ethiopia has not yet exploited it due many factors. Lack of infrastructure, lack of accommodation, financial constraint and other basic facilities are among the challenges that have been hindering eco-tourism sector from development. There is also a limitation in preserving and promoting tourism sites.
Hence, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Culture and Tourism Bureaus and other stakeholders should work in collaboration to develop eco-tourism destinations. They should also give attention for biodiversity conservation as it is highly important to preserve endemic animals, birds and plant species. Generally, eco-tourism policy has to be implemented in way of creating sustainable development which could benefit local people and investors who engage on it.
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