The Role of Souvenir as Cultural Broker in Promoting Ethiopian Tourism Destination; the Case of Addis Ababa
| dc.contributor.advisor | Sheferaw Muleta (PhD) | |
| dc.contributor.author | Maraki Yeneshet | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-01-22T10:45:40Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2024-01-22T10:45:40Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2023-07 | |
| dc.description.abstract | The Souvenir industry has become a very important and supportive tool used to promote the tourism industry in many countries. Souvenir products are useful tool in promoting the image of tourist destination since they represent the culture, tradition, norms, and values of local community. Nonetheless, there is a limited study conducted on the role of souvenirs as cultural brokers. This study, therefore, aims to fill in this research gap by examining the role of souvenirs as cultural intermediator in promoting Ethiopian tourism destination focusing from supplier side and international tourist side in Addis Ababa. On the other hand, this study aims to fill the gap of two theoretical arguments between souvenir as commodity and as cultural promoter in the context of Addis Ababa tourism industry. A cross-sectional descriptive research design using with mixed research approach. Both Primary and secondary data were collected from pertinent sources. The primary data were collected from souvenir shop owners and sellers (n=115) and international tourists (n=117) by using a survey questionnaire. By using a census sampling and convenience sampling techniques to collect data from souvenir sellers and international tourist respectively. The collected data were Processed using SPSS version 25 and the results are presented after analyzing the data using simple descriptive statistics such as frequency, mean and percentage. The results of the study show that souvenirs are playing a significant role in promoting Ethiopian cultural aspects, conveying the essence of tourism to potential visitors, and enabling tourists to experience the local culture during their stay. The findings also reveal that the communities have benefited from this new entrepreneurial opportunity in making souvenir products in the city apart from promoting potential destinations or attractions within their areas through souvenir products. Furthermore, the study shows that most of Ethiopian souvenir products meet the need of tourist beyond the problem of quality representing Ethiopian culture and tourism destination in unique and authentic way. There by confirming the three theories. The study draws conclusions form its descriptive statistical analyses, the results of which are also presented in the thesis. Finally, the study forwards some suggestions to further improve the production of souvenirs and their role as cultural intermediator in promoting tourist destinations in Addis Ababa in particular and Ethiopia in general. | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/1441 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher | Addis Ababa University | |
| dc.subject | Souvenirs, cultural brokers, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | |
| dc.title | The Role of Souvenir as Cultural Broker in Promoting Ethiopian Tourism Destination; the Case of Addis Ababa | |
| dc.type | Thesis |