Whale Watching Worldwide

Although the industry is clearly important to Zanzibar, supporting approximately 150 jobs, concerns remain
regarding the sustainable number of boats and tourists viewing the dolphins. There are also concerns
regarding how much the benefits actually flow back to the local communities. Women in the community
apparently feel that they aren’t benefitting; their incomes have actually been reduced due to dolphin
watching tourism displacing them from their traditional fishing locations (Amir and Jiddawi, 1999). In June
2004, an entrance fee of $3 came into effect for tourism activities in Menai Bay (Berggren et al., 2007). The
fee is paid per tourist and 30% of the revenue is provided to 19 villages around Menai Bay, including
Kizimkazi‐Mkunguni and Kizimkazi‐Dimbani. The other 70% goes to the Menai Bay Conservation Area head
office in Zanzibar town. Although there are some complaints from boat operators in Kizimkazi over the use
of the collection fee (Amir, pers. comm.), initiatives such as this may improve the equitable distribution of
benefits to local communities and may provide a good model for whale watching industries in developing
countries.
Main species: Large cetaceans:
humpback whale
Small cetaceans:
Indo‐Pacific bottlenose dolphin, Indo‐Pacific
humpback dolphin
Tourists:
International N/A 25
Domestic N/A
Land‐based whale watching: None
Types of tours: Boat‐based, dedicated, opportunistic
Average adult ticket price: $20 if arranged from Zanzibar town,
$7 if arranged in Kizimkazi
Estimated employment
150
numbers:
Main whale watch season: Year‐round for dolphins,
June to October for whales.
Peak tourism season is between July and
October.
Acknowledgements:
Omar Amir and the Institute of Marine Sciences of the University of Dar es Salaam.
References:
Curran, S, ‘Menai Bay Conservation Area Guide Book’, WWF Menai Bay Conservation Area Project, Zanzibar.
Amir, OA, & Jiddawi, NS 1999, ‘Dolphin tourism and community participation in Kizimkazi village, Zanzibar’, Institute of
Marine Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar.
Berggren, P, Amir, Amir, OA, Guissamulo, A, Jiddawi, NS, Ngazy, Z, Stensland, E, Sarnbland, A & Cockcroft. VG 2007,
‘Sustainable Dolphin Tourism in East Africa’. MASMA Technical Report. WIOMSA Book Series No. 7, ix.+72pp.
25 No data available from operators but the majority of tourists are likely to be international.
79