Preview

MGIMO Review of International Relations

Advanced search

Islamic Tourism in Africa

https://doi.org/10.24833/2071-8160-2022-1-82-230-248

Abstract

The research aims to assess the prospects for the development of Islamic tourism in Africa. The authors analyze the notion and features of Islamic tourism and identify key differences between “Islamic tourism” and “Halal tourism.” The authors define “Islamic tourism” as a type of tourism that includes travels for any purpose under Islamic principles. The research mainly covers the development of Islamic tourism in African countries. For this purpose, it analyzes the tourist flows’ trends and the leading African touristic destinations, identifies the main Halal-friendly African destinations. The leading states here are Morocco, Egypt, and South Africa; Tunisia fosters its potential for Islamic medical tourism; Senegal and Mali are attractive due to Islamic heritage sites. The main problems for the development of Islamic tourism in Africa have also been identified: underdeveloped tourist and Halal infrastructure, lack of security, and poor promotion of tourist services among potential tourists are among the most significant ones. The study has found that popular Halal destinations are countries with a predominantly Muslim population and states where Muslims are a minority. Despite the restrictions followed by COVID-19 and a significant decrease in the tourism sector, a return to the previous volumes of tourist flows and income is expected in 2023. The World Tourism Organization actively supports the recovery and development of tourism in African countries. The improvement of Halal infrastructure and new facilities for this type of tourism will contribute to an overall increase in income from tourism activities and the popularization of Islamic tourism.

About the Authors

R. I. Bekkin
Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (Russia)
Russian Federation

Renat I. Bekkin – Professor of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Doctor of Sciences in Economics, PhD in Religious Studies; Leading Research Fellow at the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Professor at the Institute of Oriental Studies, the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia

Spiridonovka, 30/1, Moscow, Russia, 123001.



A. S. Shnyrkova
National Research University “Higher School of Economics” (Russia)
Russian Federation

Anna S. Shnyrkova – Lecturer at the Department of Strategic and International Management, Graduate School of Business

Shabolovka, 26-28, Moscow, Russia, 119049



References

1. Akyol M., Kilinc O. 2017. Internet and Halal Tourism Marketing. International Periodical for the Languages, Literature and History of Turkish or Turkic. 9/8. Strategic Roadmap for Development of Islamic Tourism in OIC Member Countries. The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries. P. 171–186.

2. Al-Hamarneh A., Steiner C. 2004. Islamic Tourism: Rethinking the Strategies of Tourism Development in the Arab World after September 11, 2001. Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East. 24(1). P. 173–182.

3. Battour M., Ismail M.N. 2016. Halal Tourism: Concepts, Practices, Challenges and Future. Tourism Management Perspectives. No19. P. 150–154. DOI: 10.1016/j.tmp.2015.12.008

4. Battour M.M., Ismail M.N., Battor M. 2010. Toward a Halal Tourism Market. Tourism Analysis. 15(4). P. 461–470. DOI: 10.3727/108354210X12864727453304

5. Boğan E., Sarıışık M. 2019. Halal Tourism: Conceptual and Practical Challenges, Journal of Islamic Marketing. 10(1). P. 87–96. DOI: 10.1108/JIMA-06-2017-0066

6. Bouyahya D. 2016. Religious Tourism and Sufism in Morocco. European Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies. 1(5). P. 40–50. DOI: 10.26417/ejms.v2i1.p40-50

7. Carboni M., Janati M.I. 2016. Halal Tourism de facto: a Case from Fez. Tourism Management Perspectives. No19. P. 155–159. DOI: 10.1016/j.tmp.2015.12.007

8. Carboni M., Perelli C., Sistu G. 2014. Is Islamic Tourism a Viable Option for Tunisian Tourism? Insights from Djerba. Tourism Management Perspectives. No11. P. 1–9. DOI: 10.1016/j. tmp.2014.02.002

9. Carboni M., Perelli C., Sistu G. 2017. Developing Tourism Products in Line with Islamic Beliefs: Some Insights from Nabeul–Hammamet. The Journal of North African Studies. 22(1). P. 87–108. DOI: 10.1080/13629387.2016.1239078

10. Coulon C. 1999. The Grand Magal in Touba: a Religious Festival of the Mouride Brotherhood of Senegal. African Affairs. 98(391). P. 195–210. DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf. a008007

11. Din K.H. 1989. Islam and Tourism: Patterns, Issues, and Options. Annals of Tourism Research. 16(4). P. 542–563. DOI: 10.1016/0160-7383(89)90008-X

12. El-Gohary H. 2016. Halal Tourism, Is It Really Halal? Tourism Management Perspectives. No19. P. 124–130. DOI: 10.1016/j.tmp.2015.12.013

13. Henderson C.J. 2010. Sharia-compliant Hotels. Tourism and Hospitality Research. 10(3). P. 246–254. DOI: 10.1057/thr.2010.3

14. Henderson J.C. 2009. Islamic Tourism Reviewed. Tourism Recreation Research. 34(2). P. 207–211. DOI: 10.1080/02508281.2009.11081594

15. Henderson J.C. 2016. Halal Food, Certification and Halal Tourism: Insights from Malaysia and Singapore. Tourism Management Perspectives. 19(3). P. 160–164. DOI: 10.1016/j. tmp.2015.12.006

16. Istiak K. 2021. Risk, Uncertainty and the Tourism Sector of North Africa. African Development Review. No33. P. 329–342. DOI: 10.1111/1467-8268.12574

17. Jafari J., Scott N. 2014. Muslim World and Its Tourisms. Annals of Tourism Research. No44. P. 1–19. DOI: 10.1016/j.annals.2013.08.011

18. Junaid J. 2020. Halal-Friendly Tourism and Factors Influencing Halal Tourism. Management Science Letters. No10. P. 1755–1762. DOI: 10.5267/j.msl.2020.1.004

19. Kingsbury K. 2020. Staging Touba: The Performance of Piety. Journal of Religion in Africa. 48(4). P. 312–346. DOI: 10.1163/15700666-12340150

20. Litoing N.N. 2021. Muslim Pilgrimage Traditions in West Africa. DOI: 10.1093/ OBO/9780195390155-0279

21. Munanura I.E., Backman K.F., Sabuhoro E. 2013. Managing Tourism Growth in Endangered Species’ Habitats of Africa: Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Current Issues in Tourism. 16(7-8). P. 700–718. DOI: 10.1080/13683500.2013.785483

22. Naudé W.A., Saayman A. 2005. Determinants of Tourist Arrivals in Africa: A Panel Data Regression Analysis. Tourism Economics. 11(3). P. 365–391. DOI: 10.5367/000000005774352962

23. Neveu N. 2010. Islamic Tourism as an Ideological Construction: A Jordan Study Case. Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change. 8(4). P. 327-337. DOI: 10.1080/14766825.2010.521252

24. Olsen D.H. 2015. Religion, Tourism. Jafari J., Xiao H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Tourism. Springer, Cham. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-01669-6_158-1

25. Rinschede G. 1992. Forms of Religious Tourism. Annals of Tourism Research. No. 19. P. 51–67. DOI: 10.1016/0160-7383(92)90106-Y

26. Rouland B., Jarraya M. 2020. From Medical Tourism to Regionalism from the Bottom up: Emerging Transnational Spaces of Care between Libya and Tunisia. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies. 46(20). P. 4248–4263. DOI: 10.1080/1369183X.2019.1597475

27. Ryan C. 2016. Halal Tourism. Tourism Management Perspectives. No19. P. 121–123. DOI: 10.1016/j.tmp.2015.12.014

28. Sokhna C., Goumballa N., Hoang V.T., Bassene H., Parola P., Gautret P. 2021. The Grand Magal of Touba Was Spared by the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Infectious Diseases. No105. P. 470–471. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2021.01.006

29. Stephenson M.L. 2014. Deciphering Islamic Hospitality: Developments, Challenges and Opportunities. Tourism Management. No40. P. 155–164. DOI: 10.1016/j.tourman.2013.05.002

30. Vukonic B. 1998. Religious Tourism: Economic Value or an Empty Box? Zagreb International Review of Economics and Business. 1(1). P. 83–93.

31. Woodward S.C. 2004. Faith and Tourism: Planning Tourism in Relation to Places of Worship. Tourism and Hospitality Planning&Development. 1(2). P. 173–186. DOI: 10.1080/1479053042000251089

32. Zamani-Farahani H., Henderson J. 2010. Islamic Tourism and Managing Tourism Development in Islamic Societies: the Cases of Iran and Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Tourism Research. 12(1). P. 79–89. DOI: 10.1002/jtr.741

33. Bekkin R. 2020. Musulmanskiy bank kak istoricheskaya kategoriya: opyt sozdaniya kreditnykh uchrezhdeniy dlya musulman v pervoy polovine XX v. [Muslim Bank as a Historical Category: Creating Credit Institutions for Muslims In the First Half of the 20th Century]. MGIMO Review of International Relations. 13(5). P. 149–167. (In Russian).


Review

For citations:


Bekkin R.I., Shnyrkova A.S. Islamic Tourism in Africa. MGIMO Review of International Relations. 2022;15(1):230-248. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.24833/2071-8160-2022-1-82-230-248

Views: 1360


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.


ISSN 2071-8160 (Print)
ISSN 2541-9099 (Online)