Tourism publications

A series of documents and report can be downloaded from this page for free, on issues including responsible tourism, transfrontier conservation areas, nature-based tourism and ecotourism, tourism certification and tourism training.

1. RESPONSIBLE TOURISM

NEW BOOK: Responsible Tourism: Critical issues for Conservation and Development (2008)
- Responsible Tourism Practices by South African Tour Operators (2007)
- Responsible Tourism Handbook (2002)
- Responsible Tourism Manual (2002)
- The Development of Responsible Tourism Guidelines for South Africa (2002)

2. TRANSFRONTIER CONSERVATION AREAS

NEW BOOK:: Evolution and innovation in Wildlife Conservation: From Parks and Game Ranches to Transfrontier Conservation Areas (2009)
- Economic Impacts of Transfrontier Conservation Areas : Tourism in the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (2008)
- Tourism in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park (2006)
- Tourism investment in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (2005)
- Tourism in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area: Relating strategic visions to local activities that promote sustainable tourism development (2005)

3. NATURE BASED TOURISM AND ECOTOURISM

- Seminar on Ecotourism and Protected Areas in Africa: Contributing to community development and conservation. Summary Report (2008)
- Ecotourism: Benefits for conservation and local people? (2006)
- Nature based tourism and environmental sustainability in South Africa (2005)
- Economic analysis of Rhino conservation in a land-use context within the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region (2005)
- Tourism, Local Livelihoods and the Private Sector in South Africa: Case studies on the growing role of the private sector in natural resources management (2003)
- Managing sustainable nature-based tourism in Southern Africa: A practical assessment tool (2003)
- Integrating Biodiversity into the Tourism Sector: South Africa (2001)
- Integrating Biodiversity into the Tourism Sector (2001)

4. PRO POOR TOURISM

- Strategies, Impacts and costs of Pro-poor Tourism Approaches in South Africa (2003)
- Practical strategies for pro-poor tourism: Wilderness Safaris South Africa: Rocktail Bay and Ndumu Lodge (2001)

5. TOURISM CERTIFICATION

- Financing Tourism Certification (2006)
- Tourism certification in Africa (2004-6)

6. TOURISM TRAINING

- Market research on tourism training in Africa (2007)
- Community-based Tourism Enterprise Market Access Training Manual (2006)

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1. RESPONSIBLE TOURISM [ back to top]

All too often conservation efforts are seen to be in conflict with local livelihoods and resource use. As more land and natural resources are incorporated into protected areas ‘responsible tourism’ is often invoked as a way to serve both conservation ends and support local livelihoods and promote economic development. Yet does it actually work in practice?

Employing a series of case studies by practitioners from across southern Africa - one of the testing grounds for the idea that responsible tourism can promote biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation - this book provides a comprehensive, evidence based examination of the range of issues of what works and what does not.

The book opens with an overview of the issues, examines what sustainable and responsible tourism mean in practice and how they can contribute to conservation, poverty alleviation and local economic development.

PART 1 provides a rich examination of policies and institutional activities in responsible tourism by governments, donor agencies and non-governmental organizations in South Africa, Madagascar and Mozambique.

PART 2 considers nature based tourism across southern Africa, looking at local economic development, local benefits from tourism (such as equity and employment), supply and demand for responsible tourism, the economics of wildlife tourism, transfrontier conservation areas, ecological impacts of tourism and a host of other issues.

PART 3 looks at community based tourism in more detail with case studies of various projects drawn from across the region including Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and from as far north as Tanzania.

The book concludes with a detailed synthesis of the key findings with implications for policy, management and the business side of tourism.

This is an essential reference and a unique and rich source of cases studies and salient insights for professionals and academics from across conservation, development and tourism.

Links :
Earthscan - www.earthscan.co.uk
Download Earthscan flyer here (690 KB, pdf file)
Download the contents list here (79 KB, pdf file)

In 2001 a survey was published by Tearfund on the responsible business practices reported by UK-based tour operators. This survey revealed that most tour operators had examples of where their operations were making a positive difference to the lives of local people. At that time, the report noted that responsible and ethical tourism issues were not mainstream, but the move was certainly in that direction. This research for the International Centre for Responsible Tourism replicated the Tearfund study in South Africa, in order to evaluate the extent to which South African tour operators were practicing responsible tourism activities, given the context of a post-apartheid country that has considerable poverty problems, but a country that has had responsible tourism guidelines since 2002. South African tour operators attending the annual national travel trade market "Indaba" in 2006 participated in the study by completing a self-administered questionnaire. They were asked about local benefits that their business generated, donations, partnerships, impacts on the natural and cultural environment, training, policies and tourist demand for responsible tourism. This report presents the results of the study.

Links :
The International Centre for Responsible Tourism - www.icrtourism.org
Download here (360 KB, pdf file)

Developed as part of a doctoral thesis, this toolkit allows you to evaluate the environmental, socio-cultural and economic sustainability of nature-based tourism enterprises. The toolkit has been tested at four safari lodges in South Africa (Ngala Private Game Reserve, Jackalberry Lodge, Sabi Sabi and Pretoriuskop Camp) and a community-based tourism enterprise in Mozambique (Covane Community Lodge).

Download toolkit files here:

SUNTAT main text (760 KB, pdf file)
Appendix 1 (3 files): Community Database; Social assessment questionnaire; Social Answer Sheet
Appendix 2: Employment and training
Appendix 3: Enterprise purchasing database
Appendix 4 (3 files): Energy use (1), Energy use (2), Energy use (3)
Appendix 5 (3 files): Water use (1), Water use (2), Water use (3)

This handbook uses South Africa’s Responsible Tourism Guidelines as a basis for practical examples and tips on responsible tourism. It is directed at owners and operators of tourism establishments. Tourism associations are encouraged to distribute the handbook to their members.

The booklet is divided into economic, social and environmental chapters. Each part simply outlines the issues and actions will illustrations of good practice in South Africa.

Greening the World Summit on Sustainable Development initiative produced the handbook, based on the technical Responsible Tourism Manual produced for the Department for Environmental Affairs and Tourism (see above).

Links:
International Centre for Responsible Tourism - www.icrtourism.org
Download here (1865 KB, pdf file)

This manual was developed for the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, and aims to provide established as well as community-based tourism enterprises with information about “responsible tourism” and the opportunities that it presents for improving business performance. Specific to South Africa, and in line with current international best practice, the manual contains a range of practical and cost-effective responsible actions available to tourism businesses and tourism associations.

The document refers to many useful sources of information and examples of best practice that can help to guide users’ implementation of responsible business activities. The contents of this manual are thus intended to initiate a process - of working responsibly, setting targets, self-monitoring and showcasing achievements to customers, staff, the tourism sector, suppliers, neighbours and other relevant parties.

Links:
Department for Environmental Affairs and Tourism - www.environment.gov.za
International Centre for Responsible Tourism - www.icrtourism.org
Download here (2304 KB, pdf file)

Description of the process that led to the development of responsible tourism guidelines in South Africa.

Links: Natural Resources Institute - www.nri.org/NRET/nret.htm
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism - www.environment.gov.za
Download here (76 KB, pdf file)

2. TRANSFRONTIER CONSERVATION AREAS [ back to top]

This is an indispensable reference for protected area and land managers, development practitioners and academics and students in conservation, land management, development and geography. Based on the most widespread research to date, this book provides a record of the evolving thought and approaches to achieving conservation in southern Africa. Early chapters deal with the traditional ‘fines and fences’ conservation that occurred in the colonial and early post-independence period. The final section deals with more recent innovations in the sector, focusing on building and strengthening the relationships between parks and society.

Links :
Earthscan - www.earthscan.co.uk
Download Earthscan flyer here (690 KB, pdf file)

The aim of this study was to establish the economic impacts of tourism accommodation and activities in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (GLTFCA). The objectives included to:

- Establish the impacts of accommodation and tours operating in the TFCA;
- Establish levels of local benefits in relation to enterprise equity, local employment and wages from tourism in the GLTFCA;
- Ascertain revenues generated by tourism from tours and accommodation; and
- Establish whether the GLTFCA has an impact on tourism development.

This report prepared for the IUCN-Southern African Sustainable Use Specialist Group presents the results of this research.

Links :
IUCN-SASUSG - www.sasusg.net
Download here (2,225 KB, pdf file)

The Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park (GLTP) is a transboundary protected area that straddles the borders of Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe. This paper describes current state and private sector tourism within the GLTP and planning initiatives that may promote responsible tourism, and describes the achievements by community-based tourism enterprises and public–private partnerships in generating economic, social and environmental benefits. The livelihoods of people living in the park are outlined in relation to government policies on land redistribution, resettlement and options for the future, and progress in biodiversity conservation and responsible nature-based tourism development within the GLTP over the past five years is evaluated.

Links :
Development Southern Africa - http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/0376835x.asp
Download here (324 KB, pdf file)

A scoping report detailing the status of tourism investment in the areas of Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe located within the Great Limpopo TFCA. An analysis of the drivers and constraints to sustainable tourism investment is also presented.

Links :
Transboundary Protected Areas Research Initiative - www.wits.ac.za/tpari/
Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park - www.greatlimpopopark.com
Download here (1405 KB, pdf file)

The aim of the tourism workshop was to critically discuss whether the Great Limpopo TFCA is evolving into a destination conducive to sustainable tourism, and to develop practical recommendations. The report summarises fourteen presentations that were made on issues including the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park institutional structure, biodiversity conservation, tourism investment, South African National Parks’ concessioning processes, revenue sharing in the TFCA and community based tourism (i.e. Makuleke, Covane community lodge, Sengwe area, birding tourism). A synthesis of a SWOT analysis on four themes is also presented:

• Facilitating investment for sustainable tourism in the Great Limpopo (GL)TFCA;
• Improving livelihoods for the poor in and around the GLTFCA through tourism;
• Key components for responsible community based tourism in GLTFCA; and
• Land rights and resettlement issues, economic reform and empowerment.

The proceedings are intended for use by those who have an interest in tourism development in the Great Limpopo TFCA, but may also have wider uses for those working on other transboundary areas.

Links :
Transboundary Protected Areas Research Initiative - www.wits.ac.za/tpari/
Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park - www.greatlimpopopark.com
Download here (1655 KB, pdf file)

3. NATURE BASED TOURISM AND ECOTOURISM [ back to top]

This seminar was held in Maputo, Mozambique, in November 2008. It focused on the contribution of ecotourism to community development, poverty reduction and financing of protected areas, as well as related social and environmental issues, offering a forum to address the following questions, among others:

• How can policies and destination plans create enabling environments to support the development of high quality ecotourism products, community enterprises and services and other poverty-reduction mechanisms recommended by UNWTO, as well as revenue generation for protected areas, and transfrontier conservation areas?

• How can partnerships be established between protected area and tourism authorities, tourism companies and local communities, and what mechanisms make them function effectively?

• What actions and support mechanisms are needed to build up local supply chains for tourism, linking local services and products and spread the benefits of tourism activities in broader regions, surrounding protected areas that are already established destinations?

• What consultation, coordination and capacity building processes can be applied to empower local communities in decision making processes regarding planning and management of tourism in and around protected areas?

• What is the role of community-based tourism organizations in strengthening small community businesses, and how these can be supported?

• How can tourism be used to develop innovative and creative financing mechanisms for the conservation of protected areas, how these funds can be retained and best used at the sites, and what policies are needed to make these happen?

• How can ecotourism activities be effectively linked with other forms of tourism (like conventional beach tourism) and special events (like the FIFA World Cup in South Africa in 2010).

• How can the overall socio-economic impacts of ecotourism be evaluated and monitored, and how this information can be best communicated to policy-makers and managers?

This event was intended to provide opportunities for countries in the region to present experiences and examples, as well as analyzing the case of Mozambique and the Great Limpopo National Park, in order to reflect and discuss on the opportunities and challenges of ecotourism, related
policy issues and management techniques. The seminar aimed at providing a practical experience for policy makers, managers, operators and development organizations involved in ecotourism, through dynamic exchanges and concrete examples.

Links:
United Nations World Tourism Organization Official Proceedings - Download here (682 KB, pdf file)

This article was written for the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa, and reviews examples of ecotourism in Southern Africa, and demonstrates some of the positive examples emerging from the private sector, non-governmental organizations, community-based tourism enterprises and government.

Links :
African Wildlife - http://www.wessa.org.za/publicationsAWLlatest.asp
Download here (3 253 KB, pdf file)

Environmental impacts of tourism from four photographic wildlife tourism enterprises in South Africa are described. This paper from the Journal of Sustainable Tourism presents qualitative and quantitative data that was collected from Ngala Private Game Reserve, Pretoriuskop camp in Kruger National Park, Jackalberry Lodge, and Sabi Sabi using the Sustainable Nature-Based Tourism Assessment Toolkit (SUNTAT). Issues of best practice, motivations for responsible tourism and local livelihood strategies are reviewed.

Links:
The Journal of Sustainable Tourism - www.channelviewpublications.com
Download here (431 KB, pdf file)

Market analysis of the value of black and white rhino in relation to land use in southern Africa. Evaluations of the Save Valley conservancies in Zimbabwe, the Torra and Puros conservancies in Namibia, Hluhluwe-Umfolozi and Phinda in South Africa.

Links :
SADC Regional Rhino Program - www.rhino-sadc.org
Download here (1768 KB, pdf file)

Research in Southern Africa led to the development of this Sustainable Nature-Based Tourism Assessment Toolkit (SUNTAT). The doctoral thesis details the process of literature review, Delphi consultation and field tests that were used to form this reliable toolkit.

Download here (3649 KB, pdf file)

Changing institutional arrangements and policies in tourism and how they affect the poor and their access to natural resources are explored. Seventeen case studies from South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe are used to illustrate how different stakeholders have influenced rural livelihoods.

The studies include Phumlani Lodge, Amadiba Adventures, Vilanculos Coastal Wildlife Sanctuary, the Makuleke, South African National Parks, the Greater St. Lucia Wetland park and the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park. Driving forces behind the initiatives and the degree to which the poor have influenced them are explored.

Link: Institute of Development Studies - www.ids.ac.uk/ids/index.html
Download here (875 KB, pdf file)

The UNDP/UNEP/GEF Biodiversity Planning Support Programme (BPSP) commissioned this paper as one of twelve national studies on the integration of biodiversity into the tourism sector. The studies were specifically focused on how to incorporate global best practice into national biodiversity strategies and action plans.

Links: Biodiversity Planning Support Programme - www.unep.org/bpsp/HTML%20files/TS-Tourism.html
Download here (194 KB, pdf file)

A synthesis of lessons learned on how to incorporate global best tourism practice into practical activities that promote conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Twelve national case studies on integration of biodiversity and tourism in countries with a broad spectrum of biodiversity, economic and political profiles: Belize, Botswana, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Kazakhstan, Korea, Mexico, Peru, Seychelles, South Africa and Trinidad & Tobago.

Links: Biodiversity Planning Support Programme - www.undp.org/BPSP
Download here (836 KB, pdf file)

4. PRO POOR TOURISM [ back to top]

Strategies used by five private sector tourism enterprises to address poverty alleviation and local economic development are compared. Economic impacts of activities by Phinda, Sabi Sabi, Jackalberry Lodge, Coral Divers, and Sun City are presented in simple tables. Perceptions of local community members of the tourism interventions are also described.

The paper considers the effectiveness of different strategies in alleviating poverty and explores key problems and constraints.

Link: Pro-Poor Tourism- www.propoortourism.org.uk
Download here (371 KB, pdf file)

Rocktail Bay and Ndumu are joint-ventures where the local communities have partial ownership with the private sector and conservation organisations. Socio-economic impacts of these Wilderness Safaris tourism operations in KwaZulu-Natal are presented.

Link: Pro-Poor Tourism - www.propoortourism.org.uk
Download here (223 KB, pdf file)


5. TOURISM CERTIFICATION [ back to top]

The objective of the International Ecotourism Society study was to propose strategies and mechanisms to help sustainable tourism certification programs achieve long-term financial viability. The study looked at financial models and mechanisms used by certification program from other industries (such as organic produce and forestry) and from various tourism certification programs from around the world. In this report seven non-tourism certification programs and one non-tourism accreditation program to determine which experiences were applicable to tourism. In addition, 33 tourism certification programs working in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Africa were evaluated to examine their financial structures and strategies, as well as listen to their recommendations. Representatives of 12 funding bodies and two non-governmental organizations (NGOs) supporting sustainable tourism or green certification in the United States, Latin America, and Africa were interviewed to determine their funding priorities and interests; find out what types of relevant projects and programs they have supported; and elicit recommendations for how to help sustainable tourism certification and accreditation bodies become more financially sustainable.

Links :
The International Ecotourism Society - http:/www.ecotourism.org
Download here ( 878 KB, pdf file)

The International Ecotourism Society commissioned a series of studies on tourism certification in Africa, with support from the Ford Foundation. Schemes covered include Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa, Green Globe 21, Blue Flag, the Heritage Ecotourism Rating scheme and the EcoRating scheme. Three reports describe the certification systems, and outline issues relating to marketing, incentives, monitoring and their economic, social and environmental criteria.

Links:
The International Ecotourism Society - www.ecotourism.org

Financing Tourism Certification in Africa (2006)
Download here (188 KB, pdf file)

Tourism certification initiatives in Africa (2005)
Download here (217 KB, pdf file)

Tourism certification in Africa: Economic, social and environmental criteria (2005)
Download here (216 KB, pdf file)

Tourism certification in Africa: Marketing, incentives and monitoring (2004)
Download here (190 KB, pdf file)

6. TOURISM TRAINING [ back to top]

An evaluation of tourism management education in nine African countries (Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia) among both tertiary and technical vocational education institutions and the private sector. This report summarizes the findings presented to the International Finance Corporation Global Business School Network.

Download here (1,410 KB, pdf file)

A Community-Based Tourism Enterprise directory was developed in 2006 as an initiative of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), the Regional Tourism Organisation for Southern Africa (RETOSA), and the Netherlands Development Organisation SNV. As part of this project Market Access Training Manual was devised, which provides simple guidance for community-based enterprises to increase their accessibility to the marketplace. It includes clear information with examples and exercises on market access, unique selling points, pricing, commissions, advanced bookings and channels to markets.

Links :
Community-based Tourism enterprise online directory for Southern Africa - www.community-tourism-africa.com
Market Access Training Manual - Download here (956 KB, pdf file)