Tourism as a Global Development Tool

Tourism is now generally recognized to be one of the largest industries — if not the largest — in the world. It has grown rapidly and almost continuously over the past twenty years, and is now one of the world’s most significant sources of employment and of GDP. Tourism particularly benefits the economies of developing countries, where most of the sector’s new tourism jobs and businesses are being created. This rapid growth has encouraged many developing nations to view tourism as key to promoting economic growth, and global development assistance agencies see it as having real potential to help achieve many of their own development goals.

Tourism provides opportunities for diversifying local economies and promoting formation of micro- and small enterprises, many of them women-owned. These enterprises promote better lives for poor entrepreneurs, especially in rural areas where there may be few other livelihood options. Tourism is generally labor intensive and it tends to employ relatively higher proportions of women and young people than most other sectors. Tourism introduces technology and basic infrastructure, and strengthens linkages with the outside world. Well-planned and -implemented tourism projects can improve local governance, natural resources management, biodiversity conservation and other important development goals.

It is critical to remember that the rich and diverse biophysical environments found in many of the world's least developed countries must remain healthy in order for successful, sustained tourism enterprises to develop and endure. The very resources that supply these countries with their competitive edge are in many places being degraded, and tourism cannot endure as a useful tool for meeting development objectives unless this trend is reversed and the resources provided with adequate protection.

.

Tourism as a Global Devolpment Tool

• What is Sustainable Tourism?

• Sustainable Tourism at USAID

• 2004 UN-WTO Tourism Policy Forum
• USAID’s Sustainable Tourism Platform Paper

USAID Project Highlights

• Country Profile: Bulgaria
  
• Country Profile: Egypt
• Country Profile: Jamaica
• Country Profile: Jordon
• Country Profile: Namibia
• USAID Tourism Projects (Search database)
  

USAID Training Course in Sustainable Tourism (Arusha, Tanzania, Feb 2005)

Key References

• Ecotourism Development - A manual for conservation planners and managers.

• Volume I - An Introduction to Tourism Planning
• Volume II - The Business of Ecotourism Development and Management
•    Biological Diversity and Tourism: Development of guidelines for sustainable tourism in vulnerable ecosystems
• Linking Communities, Tourism and Conservation - A tourism assessment process
• Energy and Sustainable Tourism - Energy Supply and Use in Off-Grid Ecotourism Facilities
•     (USAID Environmental Regualations - Title 22 CFR, Part 216 )

• A Sampling of Key Publications
  

Resources

• Overview
• Agencies/Organizations
• Expertise Directory
• Newsletters
• Declarations and Charters
• Certification Programs

2006 Seminar Series:The Role of Communication in Sustainable Tourism Development

Past Events