Map of the proposed highway through the Serengeti. Obtained from the African Wildlife Foundation Website: www.awf.org

Lately, there has been a lot of furore about the plans by the Tanzania government to construct a major commercial highway through the Serengeti national park. The proposed road will link Arusha with Musoma town at the shores of Lake Victoria, passing right through the northern part of Serengeti.

Serengeti, as you may already know, is the starting point of the great wildebeest migration, an annual event that has been declared the world’s most spectacular natural event. During the dry season in Serengeti, millions of wildebeest, zebras and other small herbivores migrate northwards into the Masai Mara game reserve in Kenya in search for pasture. The animals then move back to Serengeti in the wet season. Every year, thousands of tourists time their East African safari so as to see this great migration.

Book a safari to see the migration
If you have never seen the migration, this may be your best time to witness the spectacle. Click here to see some great wildebeest migration packages in Kenya, offered through Africaguide. Who knows, the Tanzania goverment might just implements its plan, marking the end of the migration as we currently know it.

Effects of This Highway

My question today however is this: Could the government of Tanzania be so short-sighted as not to see the negative consequences of its plan? Or are we just crying wolf when there’s no real cause for alarm? You see, tourism is one of the most important sectors of the Tanzania economy, and the Northern safari circuit is arguably the most preferred tourist destination. (Serengeti is a key part of this northern safari cicrcuit). Is it possible that the government has not conducted a proper feasibility study of the project, vis-a-vis the possible loss of tourism revenues? Any competent government would.

Besides just stopping the wildebeest migration, conservationists point out that the construction of the road will have many other consequences including:

• Death to the animals due to speeding traffic and disruption of their migration paths.
• Increased poaching due to improved access
• Destabilization of the Serengeti ecosystem through the possible introduction of new animal diseases and invasive plant species

Obviously, the conservationists have many valid reasons to oppose the Serengeti highway project. None of them is disputing the real economic need to link Musoma and its environs with the rest of Tanzania through a proper road network. All they are saying is that this should not be at the expense of this UNESCO world heritage site. The African wildlife foundation and other conservation organizations have in fact proposed an alternative route, but the government does not look keen to consider it. Whatever happens, I hope sanity will prevail, and the government of Tanzania will act in the best interests of its people, its economy, and the spirit of regional integration.

What is not being said very loudly is the effect of this road on the Kenya tourism industry, especially in the Masai Mara. If the wildebeest migration is halted, the Mara will lose its most important appeal as a safari destination.  Even worse, the population of lions, other big cats, and other predators in the reserve could be negatively affected. What would the Mara be without its lions?

Online petition against the Serengeti highway:
If you want to sign the petition against this project, please visit this link. You may also participate in discussions in the Stop the Serengeti Highway page on facebook. I have not yet signed the petition, but most probably will, once I read adequate the facts from the government’s and opponents’ points of view.

About the Author | Timothy Kirigha

Timothy Kirigha is a Kenyan blogger with a passion about the Africa travel and tourism industry. Timothy is the editor of this Africa travel blog.