Heritage and culture tourism in Mozambique : a historical assessment

Abstract

Tourism plays an important role in the Mozambican economy. However, little has been done in terms of research regarding tourism in general and cultural tourism in particular. This mini-dissertation presents a historical assessment of heritage and cultural tourism development in Mozambique taking into consideration historical factors namely colonialism (1895-1974), the civil war (1976-1992, and the political transformations within in the country after independence in 1975. It argues that these factors had a negative effect on the image of Mozambique as tourist destination as well as the role and attitude of local people in the tourism industry. Regarding heritage and cultural tourism it finds that this type of tourism has received limited attention by the government, tourism operators, academics and the population in general. It attempts to recommend a policy and attitude change for all tourism stakeholders as a means to bring heritage and culture into the fore ground of the Mozambican tourism industry.