BALLOON SAFARIS THE KINGS OF ECO-TERRORIST

BALLOON SAFARIS THE KINGS OF LOCAL COMMUNITY EXPLOITATION 

Africa has a lot to offer when it comes to travel. Wildlife Safaris are probably the most famous from Africa experience. The safaris are an important part of the national economies and also the local economy. Travel and tourism are very important tools in development of any destination.

Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving visiting fragile, pristine and relatively undisturbed natural areas, intended as a low-impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial (mass) tourism. Its purpose may be to educate the traveller, to provide funds for ecological conservation, to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities, or foster respect for different cultures and human rights. 

Many stakeholders in Kenya tourism sector sell packages with ecotourism concept. Unfortunately Ecotourism has become a new avenue for community exploitation. In this article i want to expose the kings of community exploitation, the balloon safaris of Masai Mara national reserve.

Masai mara Balloon safaris claim to be ecotourism compliant but their dealings with the locals have shown a different side. Balloon safaris have managed to become a cartel that don't care about the local community. Unemployment in Kenya is the largest employer and the balloon safaris crew is here to make $$$ on Local Masai blood! They can careless about Sons of the soil, the people whose ancestors conserved Mara to be what it is today.

The balloon top cream crew and owners is mostly NonAfrican. There is only one (1) Masai Pilot/doctor in this hard to get industry. Locals who work for the balloon safaris have their 'nice' underpaid positions. The land crew is 100% African and are the lowest in the chain despite their backbreaking and all time tedious job. The ballon cartel can not 'afford' any machinery, it is the land crew that is paid lowest to get the ballon ready (pressure etc) and also load the balloons manually in the truck after the 'jump'. I know they are not qualified to be pilots and doctors and by the way i don't want them doing what they are not trained to do. The highest paid  'lead' land crew makes KSH 500 per day (USD 5.2 ) with no any benefit while the Balloon pilots makes KSH 40,000 (USD 500) per hour plus benefits.

Ballon safaris charges  $450 per person per hour, the basket handles a maximum of 16pax. Most companies have 5 balloons. I am not a math head but i might  NOT be incorrect to say that the balloon safari make $450*16 = $7,200 per balloon per hour and a total of $36,000 per day. Not really bad. I acknowledge that this investment are expensive, have to be insured and the crew want to make a little cake. 

The above figures just show how unethical, inhuman, barbaric and cruel this cartels can be, it is selfish businessmen like this that fuel the local hate towards non-africans businessmen in Africa. Check Uganda Idi Amin dada and Zimbabwe saga. Where are all the conservationists in Masai Mara on this? United on local exploitation is the norm in this land.

In the near future we hope that Narok county will have/allow only community Balloon safaris that benefits the community as a whole. 

please consider the local community plight, avoid doing business with cartels that don't respect local communities.