Sierra Leone uses pageantry to promote tourism, culture

Published on 24.09.2018 at 15h21 by APA News

The Sierra Leone government has taken a giant leap towards fulfilling a promise to use pageantry to promote the country’s culture and tourism.The ministry of Tourism and Culture had said it intended to use the newly crowned Miss Sierra Leone to promote the sector through a national and international campaign.

And as an initial step towards this, the winner of the last pageant, Ms Sarah Laura Tucker, has been presented with a return ticket to Paris France, where she is scheduled to participate in the International French Tourism Market (IFTM).

The 23 year-old Tucker was crowned Miss Sierra Leone last month after a hotly contested competition with participants representing all 16 districts across the country. Tucker represented Bonthe district, one of the most deprived districts in the country.

A Mass Communication student at Four Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, Ms Tucker will join thousands of tourists in Port de Versailles in Paris for the IFTM event that runs from September 25 to 28.

She will be part of the Sierra Leone delegation comprising members of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, the National Tourist Board, the Monument and Relics Commission, and the Parliamentary Committee on Tourism, as well as some private sector players.

The support package for the Ms Tucker also includes US$2000 as personal allowance during her stay in Paris. The Ministry of Tourism, which is spearheading the campaign, said Miss Tucker will serve as the face of Sierra Leone.

“Miss Sierra Leone is the brand of the country and she is an ambassador for Sierra Leone,” Dr Maimunatu Pratt, Minister of Tourism and Culture, was quoted saying on Monday.

Once a hotspot for tourism, Sierra Leone hopes to revive the sector which suffered greatly from the eleven years destructive civil war which rendered most of its landmarks useless.

Sierra Leone is among the bottom 10 countries in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index by the World Economic Forum. The country is ranked 131 out of 136 in 2017, above war-torn countries like DRC, Burundi, Chad and Yemen.

Mrs Pratt, a former university lecturer and specialist in peace and conflict studies, was appointed by new President Julius Maada Bio to handle this task.

As part of her effort, she has also announced plans to introduce a course on tourism at the country’s premier learning institution, Fourah Bay College.

https://www.journalducameroun.com/en/sierra-leone-uses-pageantry-to-promote-tourism-culture/