Assessing the contribution of eco-tourism to sustainable development in Umkhanyakude District Municipality
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Date
2019
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University of Zululand
Abstract
Ecotourism has positively been contributing to job creation, small business development and poverty alleviation. Guided by this perspective, this study sought to assess the contribution of ecotourism to sustainable development in the UMkhanyakude District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The participants were selected through a combination of simple random and purposive sampling techniques; thus, 32 participants were purposively sampled from each of the four local municipalities (Hlabisa, Jozini, Mtubatuba and UMhlabuyalingana), while 172 respondents were selected using simple random sampling, resulting in a total of 204 participants. The study employed a parallel convergent design consisting of qualitative and quantitative research methods. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from programme officials, project managers and owners of ecotourism ventures; while questionnaires were administered to elicit data from community members between May and June 2018. The study found that ecotourism had been partially implemented in UMkhanyakude’s four local municipalities, with the scope and intensity of such projects varying across the municipalities. The results reveal a degree of excellence in some of these initiatives, particularly in Mtubatuba (40%); Hlabisa (30%), UMhlabuyalingana (20%) and Jozini (10%) which, to some extent, helped mitigate poverty and unemployment in these areas. Contrary, the results show that ecotourism in areas such as Jozini had been largely underdeveloped and under-resourced. In this area, perceptions around the benefits of ecotourism were low (20%) and community participation was also significantly low (20%) in comparison with other local municipalities. These results indicate that despite lack of financial resources, opportunities still exist in terms of improving the implementation of ecotourism in UMkhanyakude, provided that local communities are properly capacitated to participate and benefit from these services. To this end, the study recommends the adoption of the Community-Based Sourcing Model to ensure that the people of UMkhanyakude benefit from ecotourism.
Description
A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the academic requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Anthropology and Developmental Studies in the Faculty of Arts, University of Zululand, 2020.
Keywords
Ecotourism, small business development, sustainable development