Le Bénin mise sur son histoire pour développer le tourisme

Benin transforms painful slave trade history into a powerful driver of tourism, drawing visitors like Nigerian Onyinye Anumba to the Door of No Return. | Contesto: cronaca

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• Le Bénin mise sur son histoire pour développer le tourisme

Contesto

OUIDAH, Benin — “The simple fact of being here makes me proud of what Africa has to offer,” said Onyinye Anumba, a Nigerian tourist standing at the Door of No Return in Ouidah, Benin, surrounded by other visitors reflecting on the site’s harrowing past as a major departure point for enslaved Africans during the transatlantic slave trade. Anumba’s words capture the emotional pull that has helped reshape Benin’s tourism strategy over the past decade, as the West African nation has deliberately turned to its history, culture, and heritage to attract visitors from across the continent and beyond. The Door of No Return, a memorial arch on the Atlantic coast, marks the spot where millions of enslaved Africans were forced onto ships bound for the Americas. For years, the site was a somber footnote in travel guides, but Benin has now placed it at the center of a broader effort to reclaim and showcase its past. The government has invested in restoring historical landmarks, building museums, and training guides to tell the stories of the slave trade, the Kingdom of Dahomey, and the Vodun religion that originated in the region. The result has been a steady increase in tourist arrivals, with visitors like Anumba coming specifically to connect with a history that textbooks often gloss over. Benin’s tourism push is part of a wider trend across Africa, where countries are leveraging painful histories to foster dialogue, education, and economic growth. Unlike many destinations that focus solely on wildlife or beaches, Benin has leaned into what officials call “memory tourism.” The approach has drawn praise from cultural experts who say it forces a reckoning with the transatlantic slave trade’s legacy while also generating revenue. In Ouidah, once a hub for Portuguese, French, and Dutch slave traders, the local economy now benefits from hotels, restaurants, and craft markets that cater to history-minded travelers. The strategy has not been without challenges. Critics have questioned whether the government is doing enough to preserve the authenticity of sites like the Door of No Return, particularly as commercialization threatens to overshadow their solemnity. Others point out...

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Categoria: cronaca