Desist from predatory marketing, take pride in African products – Malawi’s tourism minister urges
Posted by Oradiegwu Ugochukwu | one year ago | 927 times
Vera Kamtukule, Malawi's Minister of Tourism, has advised Africans to refrain from engaging in predatory marketing practices that stigmatize specific African nations and instead encourages them to take pride in their own products.
Kamtukule made the call at the maiden PYNE-NESG Africa conference held recently in Lagos, with the theme “Tourism in Africa: Catalyst for accelerated economic empowerment”.
She said this would only continue to create division which is not necessary at this stage of African development.
“We must get rid of predatory marketing, we must stop condemning ourselves to make progress, we can collaborate, learn from one another to improve on all fronts,” she said.
She expressed her dismay over the fact that Africans often view Western products as authentic while neglecting their own.
The minister emphasized the need to actively promote African products, culture, and more to stimulate economic growth in the region..
“It has become a problem that everything that is foreign becomes original to us, we need to be authentic. We must all stop diluting the authenticity of Africanism.
“We need to celebrate who we are, how we look, how we cook our food, how we dress; we need to inculcate the culture of celebrating ourselves.
“This is the only way to maintain our identity and make progress just as we have been before colonization,” she said.
