Conclusion: Tourism and Development - Tourism and Development: Concepts and Issues - page 459

approach also be adopted in developed countries where there are sections of
the population in poverty ?
One of the strategies used by governments to help reduce regional imbal-
ances and create employment and income within a country is to use tourism
as a regional development tool. Chapter 5 examines the concepts and models
of regional development such as growth poles, agglomeration economies and
competitive clusters in a variety of tourism regions. Tourism has been used for
urban revitalisation, rural regeneration, island development, peripheral develop-
ment and the development of international regions. As tourism continues to
become more competitive, governments are taking on a more entrepreneurial
role in attracting not only tourists but also investors to their region. The ques-
tions raised surrounding tourism as a regional development tool deal with
whether or not there is real regional economic dispersion of the benefits of tour-
ism. As indicated in Chapter 3, there are a series of factors which can reduce the
economic benefits of tourism development. Tourism development projects
which do not build strong linkages to the surrounding community will have
little impact on the citizens who live nearby. Questions need to be asked about
the most appropriate forms of tourism development growth poles so that the
trickle down effect can be maximised. What are the changing roles for regional
tourism organisations ? Does place branding work ? While tourism may help to
modernise a region, it may also cause the region to become dependent on exter-
nal organisations. How has new regionalism affected tourism development ?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of international growth triangles ?
Chapter 6 focuses on the central question: to what extent can tourism
contribute to community development ? The chapter explores the debates,
issues and challenges of community-based tourism, investigating the chang-
ing nature of communities and whether using tourism as a tool for commu-
nity development is naïve. Various approaches to, and forms of, tourism are
examined, including pro-poor tourism, ecotourism and community-based
conservation, indigenous tourism and cultural empowerment, and rural tour-
ism. The chapter also includes a discussion of the planning and policy sup-
port needed for community-based tourism. Key questions include how can
community-based tourism address the inequalities in distribution of eco-
nomic, environmental and socio-cultural costs ? How can pro-poor tourism
and sustainable tourism address issues such as climate change in the context
of community development ? What are the roles of non-governmental organ-
isations (NGOs) in community-based tourism ? If community-based tourism
becomes successful will the community be able to maintain control once
outside interests see the potential for profitability ? To what extent are
communities receptive of tourists and to what extent is this feeling shared
within the community ? How can existing power structures be changed to
facilitate true community involvement ? How long can a community main-
tain control over the tourism project before a local elite develops ? What are
the long-term challenges with community-based tourism ?