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RESOURCES: PAPERS & PRESENTATIONS

Author : Limpho Lekaota & Jarkko Saarined
School/Work Place : Vaal University of Technology, South Africa & University of Oulu, Finland
Contact : limphol@vut.ac.za
Year : 2015

In order to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs, rural communities should be able to participate actively in all aspects of tourism, including planning and management. The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the local communities’ participation in rural tourism development utilizing mixed method. Survey and interview materials from local rural communities and local authorities (nature reserve managers, tourism officers, environmental/conservation officers and Conservation Committee Forum members) in the Katse and Mohale Tourism Development Area of Lesotho. Non-probability, purposive and convenience sampling approaches were used to gather the data. The study was conducted in three villages adjacent to the T’sehlanyane Nature Reserve - Ha ‘Mali, Bokong Nature Reserve -Ha Lejone and Liphofung Nature Reserve - Phelandaba.

The information gathered was used to formulate a model of the elements influencing rural tourism benefit-sharing processes in rural local community contexts. Such model could be beneficial as without a strong emphasis on local benefit-sharing, Lesotho people, especially in the rural areas, would probably not receive the potential benefits of tourism development in the future. Such a model would support communities’ participation in tourism development, leading to sustainability of resources in rural tourism.

Ha ‘Mali and Ha Lejone respondents recognized community members’ participation but the Phelandaba respondents generally disagreed that the communities were involved in planning, as they indicated not being consulted in any planning about tourism. Respondents from all three villages would prefer greater involvement and decision-making power in the management of tourism.

The study concludes that government should not merely construct conservation and tourism development areas but should also empower local communities to participate in all stages of planning, development and management. Involving community members in as well as formulating supporting tourism regulations, implementation, monitoring and evaluation procedures would be beneficial for sustainable rural tourism development.


List of Articles
No. Subject Views Date
» Think Tank XV Perceptions of local communities participation in rura... file 2831 Jul 27, 2015

In order to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs, rural communities should be able to participate actively in all aspects of tourism, including planning and management. The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the local communit...

Author: Limpho Lekaota & Jarkko Saarined 

Year: 2015 

2 Think Tank XIII Local Residents' Involvement in Rural Tourism: The Cas... file 4545 Nov 06, 2013

Community involvement is regarded as a significant factor for the development of rural tourism. In Malaysia, cooperatives are used as a catalyst to achieve community development through community involvement. This paper focuses on the involv...

Author: Uma Thevi Munikrishnan, Sushila Devi Rajaratnam, Paolo Mura & Vikneswaran Nair 

Year: 2013 

1 Think Tank XIII Assessing the Impact of Rural Tourism Development on t... file 6696 Nov 06, 2013

Past literature has posited that tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors and has been signified as an attractive investment proposition. Rural tourism sector has been actively promoted by the Malaysian government and currently, it is c...

Author: May-Chiun Lo, Vikneswaran Nair, Peter Songan & Helen Lee HuiHui 

Year: 2013 

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