D'utilité Publique avec Prof. Norrin Halilem

🌟 Our latest research article in Tourism Analysis delves into the role of local entrepreneurs from impoverished areas in shaping slum tourism 🌍.

In brief, across hashtag#India, hashtag#Brazil, and hashtag#SouthAfrica, hashtag#slums, hashtag#favelas, and hashtag#townships rise in the shadows of thriving modern cities. While these areas are often defined by fragile infrastructure, limited access to clean water, poor sanitation, and uncertain property rights (as per UNHabitat.Afrique Centrale 🌍), they are far more than symbols of deprivation. They represent vibrant social and cultural hubs, woven together by shared identities, languages, and aspirations.

Over the past 40 years, slums have gradually opened to the outside world: journalists, politicians, aid workers, and even… tourists ✈️. In post-apartheid South Africa, for instance, slums have transformed from forbidden zones to must-see destinations, with 25% of international tourists visiting a slum in Cape Town and over 300,000 visitors annually!

Yet, slum tourism remains deeply polarizing. Kenyan activist Odede aptly encapsulates one perspective: “Slum tourism is a one-way street: they get photos 📸; we lose a piece of our dignity.” On the other hand, a local entrepreneur in Cape Town we interviewed told us that slum tourism has the power to transform perceptions—both tourists’ views of slum residents and residents’ views of outsiders.

While slum tourism is often marketed as socially responsible, it’s crucial to distinguish between initiatives that genuinely foster development and those that jeopardize dignity.

With Anne-Lise Pasquier-Fay and Diop Balla, PhD, we explored 🔍 the linchpin of this debate: the final link in the tourism chain—the local entrepreneurs who manage slum tours in Cape Town (South Africa) and contribute directly to their communities’ development.

👉 Check out our latest academic article 📝:
Halilem, N., Diop, B., & Pasquier-Fay, A. L. (2024). For and by the People? Internal Versus External Slum Tourism Entrepreneurs’ Impacts. Tourism Analysis, 29(4), 481–500.
📎 Article link: https://doi.org/10.3727/108354224X17180286995762

📎 ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383909609_For_And_By_The_People_Internal_Versus_External_Slum_Tourism_Entrepreneurs%27impacts