Thembinkosi Gumede

By Thembinkosi Keith Gumede and Antonia Thandi Nzama

A vast majority of scholarship share a similar view that collective participation of different stakeholders serves as a prerequisite for ecotourism sustainable development. Local community participation is considered to be an important pillar of ecotourism development as local communities are capable of influencing success or failure of ecotourism development projects. Socio-economic and socio-cultural well-being of local communities are crucial ingredients for maintaining rapport amongst stakeholders and sustaining ecotourism development. Despite being promulgated as a central pillar of ecotourism development, literature reveals that local communities have not been actively participating in planning and decision-making processes regarding ecotourism development. Adoption of Western-centric oriented participation frameworks by numerous state authorities coupled with lacking necessary skills have been identified as the main factors that hinder active participation of local communities in ecotourism development initiatives. It has therefore, been suggested that ecotourism destinations need to adopt and implement participatory approaches that suit their specific contexts and promote bottom-up ecotourism development procedures. Based on its potential for influencing review and amendment of existing tourism-related policies, a local community participation improvement model has been developed. The model is aimed at facilitating inclusive and active participation of all stakeholders in ecotourism development processes.

Part of the book: Protected Area Management

By Thembinkosi Keith Gumede, Antonia Thandi Nzama and Joyce Mnesi Mdiniso

Nature-based tourism (NBT) is one of the most rapidly growing segments of the global service economic space. However, as its success and sustainability are dependent largely on human mobility, NBT is susceptible to economic disruptions triggered by the advent of unprecedented hazardous global phenomena. Literary evidence has revealed that certain strategies, such as strict health protocols and guidelines for tourism reactivation, have been implemented by tourist destinations to sustain tourism activities amid disastrous pandemics and epidemics. Health-related and general safety issues have been at the helm of policy and decision making in tourism-related initiatives to enhance the image of ideal tourist destinations. Such events, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic that introduced stringent regulations, have caused the tourism industry and its sub-sets to be completely transformed from being ‘normal sectoral environments characterized by optimistic economic prospects’ to ‘new normal environments characterized by uncertain economic prospects’. According to the business theory, the success of an enterprise is determined by assumptions relating to its environment, the accomplishment of its mission, its service competency, and the utilisation of resources that enable the achievement of its mission. The social exchange theory proposes interactions that create commitment and an enabling environment to build strong relationships under certain conditions. This is applicable to the tourist industry as tourists travel to destinations that adapt to unprecedented conditions on a par with evolving environmental demands.

Part of the book: Integrative Approaches in Urban Sustainability