Assessment of Community Empowerment and Sustainable Tourism Development: The Case of Zege Peninsula, Bahir Dar.
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Date
2011-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Community empowerment has become ropidly the most fimdamental instrument to meet sustainable
tourism development demand across the world at large and LDCs in particular. The main purpose of
this research is to assess community empowerment and its contribution for sustainable tourism
development in Zege Peninsula. The study design is descriptive and employed both qualitative and
quantitative approaches. Field survey, interviews and direct observation were the main data gathering
instruments employed. 96 household representatives and 24 key informants were taken from tourism
officials, tourism businesses and tourists through both probability and non-probability sampling
methods to understand the underlying scenarios. Qualitative approaches used to analysis
predominantly qualitative variables that are subject to descriptions of phenomena and narrations
where as quantitative analysis used for the quantifications of major themes and phenomena that
consisted of quantifiable variables expressed in numerical figures and magnitudes using version J 9
Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software. The results of the study showed that the status
ofCE process is in its infant stage despite local communities showed high interest levels (mean 3.9) to
involve in identifYing problems, management, decision-making, problem solving, equitable benefit
sharing and tourism operation 76.87% (mean 4.03) of the respondents acknowledged the positive
effects of community empowerment where as 53.9% (mean 3.1) of the respondents observed negative
effects of community empowerment that deteriorate sustainable tourism development. Thus,
economical, social, political and psychological empowerments of community are not well practiced. It
would have been strong support of sustainable tourism development in terms of socio-cultural,
economical and environmental dimensions within and around Zege Peninsula if there had been
suffiCient community empowerment. Local people, tourism officials, tourism businesses and visitors
conveyed that community empowerment practice is very limited though it is the best alternative to
ensure STD of Zege. To conclude, even if community empowerment can play central role to achieve
sustainable tourism development, the process is velY limited and in its infant stage in terms of
economical, social, political and psychological empowerments. The final consequence will be nonsustainable
tourism development characterized by dependency syndrome, diminishing livelihood
options, out breaks of confiicts, accumulations of benefits by few individuals, decrease in tourist fiows,
pollution, displacement of communities, propagation of illegalities and aggressive degradation of nonrenewable
tourism resources.
Key words:
Community empowerment; Degradation; Equitable benefit sharing; Sustainable tourism development
Description
Keywords
Community empowerment, Degradation, Equitable benefit sharing, Sustainable tourism development