News archive

Slum tourism can be a controversial issue, with some seeing it as beneficial to local communities and others as exploitative, with tourists ‘ogling’ slum inhabitants as if they’re in a zoo. Can slum tourism really be beneficial? Joao Vergara, a consultant and volunteer on the Morrinho Project since 2005 and one of the founders of Cama e Café, tells us how slum tourism is impacting on people in the slums of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil…

The Morrinho Project is a tourism project in the slums of the Rio favelas. It began in August 2007 in the Community Vila Pereira da Silva, which has approximately 5,000 inhabitants. The main focus is to support controlled community tourism activities and provide income generating opportunities for local people.

The NGO Morrinho consulted 24 elected community leaders, shopkeepers and a local council member on how they thought the project should be structured. This led to the organisation of a workshop last October to begin the process of participatory planning for tourism to the area, enabling the local community and other stakeholders to be involved. Most of them had seen some tourists, but it was the first time that they had been consulted about tourism development. Only one person considered tourism to have a negative impact. Most regarded it as beneficial for the community, as well as a means of improving the image of the place.

Kelly Martins Oliveira, President of the Association of Residents in Vila Pereira da Silva, says: “The tourism project includes a guesthouse called Pousada Favelinha (little slum), tours and shows at the square. It gives visibility to the community in a positive way and promotes wealth generation. The community likes hosting tourists as they can show how proud they are of their home. In time, the benefits could be larger, with more people being involved by, for example, hosting tourists in their own houses. Money generated by tourism activities could be invested in social activities. I believe the tourists themselves would welcome the chance to invest more in the community.”

Tourists already stay in local hostels and hotels. Morrinho has implemented training and language lessons for tour guides and community members, and handicraft courses so that other locals can generate an income.

Recycling waste has also been introduced, as well as promoting community events to raise money for the poorer members of the community.

The aim is for the Morrinho Project to generate additional funding for a school, hospital and child care and for each family to have an income of £80 per month. The project is still in its infancy and is centred on Morrinho and in the Pousada Favelinha, one area of the favela. But it is developing at a pace which allows the project to be sustainable. Even the youngsters, the ‘new generation’ of the favelas are getting involved, and they are brilliant.

This project still depends on the help of institutions, government and volunteers and is certainly a tough, long-term challenge. But our vision is that by 2012, the Pereirao community will be recognized as a community that has achieved sustainable development through tourism.

Let us know what you think! Post a comment on the Travel Dilemmas section of our website today

About the Organisation

NGO Morrinho was set up by the founders of Brazilian bed and breakfast network Cama e Café  to include Rio and favela residents in the process of development through tourism. The NGO aims to enable people from the Pereirao community to work together for the sustainable development of tourism, including economic, social and cultural improvements. This includes creating job opportunities and organising workshops and courses to enable local people to gain the skills needed for managing their own tourism. The NGO supports the community to market their products whether they be guesthouse accommodation, tours or handicrafts. It also supports the training of local guides and reinvesting in the local area so that the benefits are felt throughout the community.