Tanzania is set to construct the first world class ‘real human history’ museum dome in Ngorongoro Conservation Area which is in the northern part of the country.
The state of the art museum will be built in 2015 at the Laetoli archaeological site at a cost of US$30m and will feature a human-foot shaped enclosure. Prof Charles Musiba from the United States, who was in-charge of the re-excavation process, said the museum will be able to create its own weather condition through special machinery and high-tech electronics.
The senior communication manager for the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) Mr. Adam Akyoo indicated that the technical drawings for the proposed live hominid footprints museum will be completed before the end of this year to pave way for the project to start next year.
The site is expected to be a real competition for the other East African touristic sites since most tourists will be flocking at the site to view real footprints of their forefathers made some 4 million years ago. Tourists have been flocking to the Laetoli site in hopes of seeing the origin of human kind now have a reason to smile, thanks to the state’s move of unveiling the early human trail for tourism and research interests.
Discovered by Dr Mary Leakey in 1978, the 23-meter-long tracks of footprints at Laetoli site were covered in 1995 with an elaborate protective layer after they allegedly began to deteriorate with exposure. Scientists believe that even more footprints can be discovered through intense digging.
Tanzania is a country with many tourist attractions. More than 44% of the country’s land area is covered with game reserves and national parks. Tanzania is also home to the famous Roof of Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro. On 6 January 2012 The New York Times awarded Tanzania the 7th position among 45 top destinations to visit. The tourist industry currently supports 27,000 jobs and generates 25% of Tanzania’s foreign exchange.
