Tourism and its impact

on developing countries
In Main Features of Economic Geography

Abazaj, Fabion
Erasmus exchange student
Main subject: VWL
Matr. Number: 6028942
E-mail: fabio.ab94@gmail.com

Seminarraum 524
Prof. Nicolas Reum
WS 2014 - 2015

Contents
1. Definition, types and forms of tourism ............................................................................................2
2. Conditions and facilitating/inhibiting factors for tourism to arise ...................................................2
2.1 Environment ...............................................................................................................................4
2.2 Economic factors .......................................................................................................................4
2.3 Institutional factors & tourism management ..............................................................................5
3. Benefits of tourism ...........................................................................................................................5
3.1 Global Exports & Foreign exchange earnings ...........................................................................6
3.2 Governmental investments & revenues .....................................................................................6
3.3 Generation of employment.........................................................................................................7
4. Arising problems ..............................................................................................................................7
4.1 Economic leakage ......................................................................................................................7
4.2 Cultural impact...........................................................................................................................8
4.3 Dependence ................................................................................................................................9
4.4 Inter-sectoral competition ..........................................................................................................9
4.5 Environmental degradation ........................................................................................................9
5. Solutions through sustainable tourism .......................................................................................... 10
5.1 Sustainable tourism ................................................................................................................. 10
5.2 Pro-poor tourism ..................................................................................................................... 11
5.3 The role of financial institutions ............................................................................................. 12
6. Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 13
7. Country Cases ............................................................................................................................... 13
7.1 Albania .................................................................................................................................... 13
7.1.1 Interesting Facts & Highlights ......................................................................................... 13
7.1.2 Problems .......................................................................................................................... 14
7.1.3 Current strategies, aims & perspective............................................................................. 15
7.2 Zambia .................................................................................................................................... 16
7.2.1 Interesting Facts & Highlights ......................................................................................... 16
7.2.2 Problems .......................................................................................................................... 17
7.2.3 Suggested strategies & perspective .................................................................................. 18
8. References ..................................................................................................................................... 20

List of figures
Figure 1: Components of tourism development .................................................................................................. 3
Figure 2: UNWTO & UNEP Aims for Sustainable Tourism ............................................................................ 10
Figure 3: Tourist-eye view of the world ............................................................................................................ 11
Figure 4: Traditional framework vs Pro-poor tourism framework .................................................................... 12
Figure 5: Communities participation in wildlife management in Zambia ......................................................... 18

1. Definition, types and forms of tourism

According to a traditional definition derived from the World Tourist Organization, tourists
are perceived as individuals or groups that visit a place, other than their usual place of residence, within their country of residence (domestic tourism) or another country (international tourism) for at least one night and for a purpose of leisure, health, business, studies,
sports, religion etc.1 When it comes to international tourism, it is clear that there is difference between inbound tourism, which involves foreigners that a country receives as tourists, and outbound tourism, which involves the residents that a country exports as tourists
to other countries.2 Tourists can be divided into different categories according to different
purposes of visit and to the way they organize and spend their days away from their usual
residence. Tourism can thus traditionally be leisure (and based on the activities undertaken
can be at the same time i.e. cultural, religious, health or sports tourism), educational, business, of special interest (i.e. culinary, dark or sex tourism) or alternatively ecotourism and
agritourism. There is not emphasis on these aspects in the current paper, since the topic
concerns more tourism in developing countries and not tourism in general.

2. Conditions and facilitating/inhibiting factors for

tourism to arise
The following five factors (5 A Tourism factors) describe the vital prerequisites or conditions for successful tourism to arise in any country3:

UNWTO technical manual: Collection of Tourism Expenditure Statistics,

http://pub.unwto.org/WebRoot/Store/Shops/Infoshop/Products/1034/1034-1.pdf World Tourism Organization
(1995), (March 26th 2009)
2
Recommendations on Tourism Statistics,
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/newsletter/unsd_workshops/tourism/st_esa_stat_ser_M_83.pdf , United Nations
(1994) (July 12th 2010)
3
Western, T. Five A's of Tourism, p. 11-12, Australia, 2008

1. Attractions (Locale), as the most basic component of tourism, refer to anything that
stimulates the need to travel to a specific destination. For instance, holiday destinations (leisure tourism) may offer natural attractions (Locale).
2. Accommodation refers to any place where tourists can find shelter and food, in an
affordable price, and where they can feel comfortable. The place can range from
deluxe hotels to low budget hostels.
3. Accessibility refers to the ability to reach the destination by means of transport regularly, comfortably, economically and safely by air, railway, motorway or water.
4. Amenities include all the services tourists may need during a stay in a destination,
such as public WC, restaurants, shopping centers, cafes, telecommunication, and
emergency services.
5. Activities relate to any activity undertaken during the tourists stay in a destination,
such as sports, visits to places of historical and cultural interest such as parks, museums and theaters, or simply, enjoying beach facilities.
All factors mentioned above can be classified as sources or providers into four categories4:
i.

Natural resources

ii.

Built Environment

iii.

Operating Sectors

iv.

Organization

Based on the factors and divisions above we could illustrate tourism development conditions as follows, where each category is a subset of the following one:

Figure 1: Components of tourism development

Source: Own illustration based on Western (2008): p.11-12, and Goeldner (2011): p.333

C. Goeldner & B. Ritchie, Tourism: Principles, practices and philosophies, p.333, John Wiley & Sons
(2011)

Below, the role of environment, economy and policy in particular is argued thoroughly.

2.1 Environment
The environmental factor is of high importance since people prefer to visit places with unspoiled natural ambient. For instance, official measures about natural conservation may include the destinations population density, the number of treaties concerning the environment signed or the CO2 emissions.5 Thus, developing countries may be considered ideal,
since they mostly havent undergone rapid urban expansions in most of their territory.
Two factors that may facilitate a tourists arrival are primarily climate and scenery. A climate of warmth and sunshine mostly attracts tourists from colder regions. (i.e. tourists from
Germany or the UK mostly visit Mediterranean countries) Analogously, countries of cooler
climate may attract tourists from hot-climate areas, being ideal for winter tourism. (i.e.
tourists from Spain or Italy visiting Slovakia)6

2.2 Economic factors

Economic variables such as the consumer price index, the added industry value, the purchasing power or trade volume may depict the way lower local prices of a destination that
may appeal to tourists. Cheaper destinations are being nowadays more attractive to tourists, also due to the later years global financial crisis and consequent recession.
Perceiving tourism services a typical good, it is worth mentioning how tourism demand behaves across different fluctuations. Consumers mostly spend a constant ratio of their income on tourist services. When income rises, demand for tourist services will rise as well.
Moreover, seeking to their utility maximization, they will differentiate among different destinations based on their service price. Thus, as prices increase, demand will decrease. Finally, consumers are assumed to have low short-run price and income elasticities and higher
long-run ones, in the meaning that, for example, with rising prices they have less time
5

S. Brown, Why are some countries more successful tourist destinations than others?
http://knowledge.essec.edu/en/business-society/what-really-makes-tourism-successful.html , Essec Business
School (October 4th 2012)
6
S. Patil & M. Patil, Factors Influencing the Growth of Tourism, http://articlesjunction.blogspot.com/2013/07/five-main-factors-influencing-growth-of.html , (July 20th 2013)

change their travel plans in the short-run. But in the long-run they may find substitute destinations, thus being more price elastic.7

2.3 Institutional factors & tourism management

Among policy factors, the main one is the clear vision for the enhancement of the national
economy with an important contribution by tourism. Usually, the lack of clear strategy regarding the appropriate exploitation of tourism resources in a country by relative national
institutions may be an important factor to hinder further touristic development and the
country may refrain from the path of growth.
A successful framework of tourism management theoretically includes8:
i.

Practices that facilitate balanced administration and management of the destination

(planning and management i.e. organized use of resources and coordination of relevant sectors, such as infrastructure, energy and tourist sector, or existence of institutions exclusively charged with the tourist development process, such as ministry
of tourism in a country, liberalization of visa regimes etc.)

ii.

The pursuit of a type, style and level of tourism that contributes to the social, cultural, political and environmental sustainability of the destination for purposes of living, work and visit (special character of tourism development and growth selection of a clear orientation, i.e. practically associated with a tourism campaign and
motto)

iii.

The promotion of tourism both within and outside a destination to attract and influence appropriate visitors (marketing, advertisement through means of communication and media)

3. Benefits of tourism
Impacts of tourism industry for either developing or already developed countries include
7

Tourism Research Australia, Factors affecting the inbound tourism sector,

http://www.tra.gov.au/documents/Factors_Affecting_the_Inbound_Tourism_Sector_FINAL_-_2_June.pdf
(June 2011)
8
M. Wray et al., Sustainable Regional Tourism Destinations, CRC for tourism Australia, p.35 (2010)

mainly the earnings on foreign exchange, increase of motivation of infrastructure investment and consequently state revenues, increase of local employment and booming of businesses. Precisely, tourism economy makes up globally 9% of World GDP.9

3.1 Global Exports & Foreign exchange earnings

Global tourism ranks fourth after fuels, chemicals and automotive products in global exports for more than 150 of countries and top export earner for more than 60 countries, with
an industry value of more than $ 1 trillion per year. Furthermore, it accounts for 1/3 of
worlds exports of commercial services, and also makes up 6% of total global exports.10
Moreover, tourism expenditures along with the import and export of relevant products and
services generate income in favor of the tourist receiving economies, and thus, can push for
required investments for financial growth and other economic sectors.
The foreign exchange earnings which are generated by international tourism prove its importance especially for developing countries. More specifically, tourism is the main
source of foreign exchange for 1/3 of the developing world and for countries of the
least developed world.11

3.2 Governmental investments & revenues

Tourism may as well be the motive force for governments to invest on local infrastructure,
i.e. electricity, water systems, telephone networks, roads, highways, public transport, airports, waste management, or sanitation.12
Government revenues from tourism industry contribute either directly or indirectly. Direct
contributions derive either from taxes implied on tourism employment and businesses income or from taxes implied on tourists as arrival and departure taxes. Differently, indirect
contributions involve tax revenues associated with products and services supplied to tour9

World Tourism Organization, Why Tourism matters (2014)

United Nations Environment Programme, 2012 Tourism in the Green Economy Report, Introduction (vii)
11
United Nations Environment Programme, 2012 Tourism in the Green Economy Report, Introduction (vii)
12
Tourism and Economic Conservation, United Nations Environment Programme,
http://www.unep.org/resourceefficiency/Business/SectoralActivities/Tourism/FactsandFiguresaboutTourism/I
mpactsofTourism/EconomicImpactsofTourism/TourismandEconomicConservation/tabid/78785/Default.aspx
10

ists. The World Travel and Tourism Council gives estimates that direct, indirect and
personal tax contribution of tourism worldwide was around $800 billion in 1998 and
doubled by 2010.13

3.3 Generation of employment

Tourism can generate jobs directly or indirectly. Its direct contribution to the employment
sector involves hotels, restaurants, taxi networks, cafes, clubs or souvenir stores, sport centers (for example skiing or water sports centers). Indirectly it contributes through the supply
of goods and services to touristic businesses.
The tremendous growth of global tourism has led to important creation of job places.
Tourism sector represents directly more than 8% of world employment, or 1 out of 11 employed people, with more than 235 million jobs around the globe, according to the International Labour Organization. Moreover, it is expected that by 2019 the sector will be
providing 296 million jobs. 14

4. Arising problems
4.1 Economic leakage
Even if tourism is a force that creates employment and generates foreign currency thus
helping pay for national imports, many developing countries do not reap economic benefits,
because of the external ownership and control of key parts of their tourist industry. The
term economic leakage refers to the economic outflows caused of foreign ownership,
since benefits of this development tend to leak abroad.
The main transport companies, accommodation chains and tour services, all may operate
globally and tend to be established mostly in the already developed world, where most of
13

, Tourism & Economic Conservation, United Nations Environment Programme

Employment in tourism industry to grow significantly over the coming decade, says ILO report,
http://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/media-centre/press-releases/WCMS_146761/lang--en/index.htm International Labour Organization (November 19th 2010)
14

the inbound tourists come from. Many tourists towards the developing countries will already have their trips booked and organized by companies established in their home countries, travel by their national air carriers and stay in international hotel chains. 15 Foreign
ownership is especially dominant in the upper sections of tourist industry, with almost of
first class hotels in Barbados, for instance, being owned by non-nationals.16
This concentration of extra-national ownership put brakes on the economic benefits of tourist development for the developing host countries, since a large proportion of the profits are
expatriated towards the foreign company-owner countries, along with wages of managerial
stuff, and paid inputs supplied from abroad.
(Other economic problems include the large ratio of tourist-related jobs being low paid,
even lower than in other sectors of the economy.17 Moreover, as in developed countries, in
developing countries as well a large proportion of tourism employment is highly seasonal,
which impedes benefits for general employment.)

4.2 Cultural impact

Tourism is mostly considered as a form of cultural exchange, with tourists being let to learn
about local culture and history. Nevertheless, most of the activities that tour companies, hotel chains and agencies offer ensure that tourists will get a well-organized tourism experience that mostly tailors local traditions and practices in order that they meet the tourist
needs.
The mostly significant income gap between tourists and locals are obvious, and can be seen
by the prevalent lifestyle (clothes, jewelry etc.) of the formers who choose hotels, bars and
restaurants where local residents would hardly afford to go to. In addition, in many traditional and conservative societies, such as the Muslim ones, either the behavior of Western
tourists may offend the beliefs of local residents, causing thus displeasure and tension, or

15

D. McKinnon, A. Cumbers, An Introduction to Economic Geography, p.294-295, Pearson Education,

2007
16
Potter, R.B., Barker, D., Conway, D. and Klak, T. 2004. The Contemporary Caribbean. Pearson/PrenticeHall, London and New York, p.171
17
Potter, R.B., Barker, D., Conway, D. and Klak, T. 2004. The Contemporary Caribbean. Pearson/PrenticeHall, London and New York, p.325

the local population will slightly and silently accept the form aggressive tourism in order
to gain tourist dollars and betray its culture.18 Thus, inbound tourism may lead to the disappearance of their cultural wealth.

4.3 Dependence
Some developing countries dependence on tourism may carry risks, such as their remaining marginal position in international tourism flows. Dependence on tourism may make
these developing countries more vulnerable, since the tourism sector is known to be highly
volatile and vulnerable to both business cycles, at least in the tourists home countries, and
international political trends.19

4.4 Inter-sectoral competition

Inter-sectoral competition concerns key factors of production. Through development,
tourism becomes more lucrative, increases needs for labor, capital and land. While this process in demand growth seems positive at a first glance, yet it causes tensions among different markets within the nation and often causes a significant increase in their costs: high rises of in prices and rents automatically leads to inflation, conflicts of uses between locals
and tourists, excess privatizations and land scarcity.20

4.5 Environmental degradation

A usual phenomenon is also the degradation of natural environment and the rise in pollution, which badly designed tourist strategies may cause. Concentrated population sometimes is usually a cause of excess reception capacity for specific regions. This automatically
leads to environmental deterioration that puts in high risk its survival.

21

Tourism is an im-

portant contributor to climate change, accounting for 5% of worldwide CO2 emissions, pri18

D. McKinnon, A. Cumbers, An Introduction to Economic Geography, p.295, Pearson Education, 2007

Private Sector & Development, Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Issue 7 (September 2010), p.12
20
Private Sector & Development, Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Issue 7 (September 2010), p.12-13
21
Private Sector & Development, Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Issue 7 (September 2010), p.13
19

marily caused by transport and tourist facilities. Local pollution of land and water due to
poor treatment of waste by businesses involved in tourism sector and from the activities
that tourists undertake is a worrying fact, as well. Moreover, accommodation businesses
often use non-renewable resources, while poorly sited tourism development and inappropriate activities can damage biodiversity in sensitive areas to an extent that, for instance,
whole coral reefs may not survive, or may cause damage to cultural heritage sites.22

5. Solutions through sustainable tourism

Many developing countries have set tourism as apriority in their national developmental
policies, and are trying with the support of donors and development organizations to increase tourisms contribution to poverty reduction. This process is highly related with sustainable tourism and pro-poor tourism.

5.1 Sustainable tourism

A fundamental prerequisite of the tourism sector is the adoption of sustainable tourism
principles and the focus on the achievement of sustainable developmental goals, with sustainable tourism not being considered as a distinct component of tourism, but being regarded as a condition for tourism sector wholly. The UNWTO has defined sustainable tourism
as tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host
communities.
In particular, UNWTO and UNEP have recognized 12 aims for sustainable tourism:

Figure 2: UNWTO & UNEP Aims for Sustainable Tourism, Own illustration based on UNWTO (2010)

22

Sustainable Tourism for Development, p.16, EC Development and Cooperation Europeaid (2013)

10

5.2 Pro-poor tourism

A special form of sustainable tourism, Pro-poor tourism (PPT) is defined as tourism that
generates net benefits for the poor. The benefits may be material (economic) or not (social,
cultural or environmental), and may not exclude benefits for rich people as well. The main
goal of PPT strategies is the creation of opportunities for poor people in a regional or national scale. Probably, PPT cannot emerge without the successful growth of the entire tourism destination in question. But for sure it is an approach to the tourism industry that involves stakeholders, from micro to macroeconomic levels. Among these involved stakeholders are the governmental institutions, the private sector, civil society and of course the
mainly involved poor people of the region in question, acting both as producers and decision makers.23
Figure 3:
Tourist-eye
view of the
world
The area of
each country is proportional to
the number
of international tourist arrivals.
Source:
Worldmapper (2006)

Pro-poor tourism may be summarized in a set of principles:24

Participation: poor people must participate in tourism decisions if their livelihood

depends on the way tourism is developed
A holistic livelihood approach: the spectrum of economic, environmental and social, short-term or long-term livelihood concerns of the poor people has to be taken
into consideration
Distribution: spreading PPT needs analysis of the distribution of both benefits and
costs and the way to influence it
Flexibility: predetermined and planned approaches are unlikely to maximize benefits for poor populations, and the scale of development may need adaption.

23

C. Ashley, D.Roy & H. Goodwin, Pro-Poor Tourism Report No. 1, p.2, Overseas Development Institute
(April 2001)
24
C. Ashley, D.Roy & H. Goodwin, Pro-Poor Tourism Report No. 1, p.50, Overseas Development Institute
(April 2001)

11

Commercial realism: ways to improve impacts on the poor within commercial sustainability constraints
Learning: especially learning from experience. PPT requires to teach lessons from
poverty analysis, environmental management, good governance and SMEs development.

The key differential feature is that it puts poor people and poverty at the center. From that
point, it sees tourism as one of the component of the households, local and national economies and environment that affects them. The agenda of sustainable tourism starts from the
same focus as that of mainstream tourism industry, i.e. the mainstream destinations. From
that point, it includes environmental and other concerns, in which social issues are towards
the periphery, and moves out to less significant destinations. The traditionally poor people
of the South are thus at the edge of the picture:

Figure 4: Traditional framework vs Pro-poor tourism framework

Source: Ashley, Roy & Goodwin, Pro-Poor Tourism Report No. 1, p.50 (2001)

5.3 The role of financial institutions

Since tourism already plays a significant role in the economies of developing countries, financial institutions can no more neglect this sector. There is evident proof that the boom of
the tourism sector must be supported. Moreover, donors, being aware of financing difficulties on the tourism sector, yet take a specific interest in hotel projects. Indeed, they offer
real repayment guarantees and have a financial capacity which allows them to implement
actions to promote the positive effects of such projects. Each project, though, needs a detailed analysis of its impacts. This must be combined with all the prerequisites that will
guarantee success such as the implementation of an Environmental and Social Management
Plan and the costs of developing certain infrastructure that will facilitate the public. Thus,
12

promoting local economies and regional businesses to access the markets, they will gain
obvious results even in small timescales.25

6. Conclusion
Despite criticism for its negative impacts, tourism already contributes significantly to economic growth and employment in developing countries. (often above 10%). If governments
increased the levels of financing in favor of tourism, tourism would become a powerful tool
for development and poverty reduction. In developing countries it held out better against
the 2008 financial crisis than in the already developed world. It can offer investment chances that are both lucrative and responsible.
Alternative types of tourism projects, such as ecotourism, are strongly proven to have positive impacts on development. Yet, mainstream tourism can provide significant contribution
as well, if especially it focus on the disappearance of regional disparities and tries to be established in remote areas and boost local economies there.
Among the numerous players in the tourism sector (public authorities, civil society, NGOs
and the tourists themselves), donors can also play a role by selecting the appropriate projects, which are often neglected by commercial banks and financial institutions. Furthermore, they can push for further coordination among the different stakeholders and thus
prove that tourism projects in developing countries are both sustainable and profitable.26

7. Country Cases
7.1 Albania
7.1.1 Interesting Facts & Highlights
Tourism in Albania consists of archaeological heritage from Illyrian, Greek, Roman and
Ottoman eras, religious heritage of Roman, Byzantine and Islamic influence, medieval cas25

Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Private Sector & Development, Issue 7, p.27 (September 2010)
26
Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Private Sector & Development, Issue 7, p.29 (September 2010)

13

tles, UNESCO world heritage sites, unspoiled azure (Ionian sea) or navy blue beaches
(Adriatic sea), mountainous relief, traditional Albanian cuisine (a common subset of the
Balkan and Mediterranean one), Cold War era artifacts (bunkers Bunkart expo building opened to the public in 201427). In 2008, 2,089,538 tourists, i.e. around 400,000 more
tourists (23% increase from previous the previous year) entered Albania from abroad. An
interesting fact is that despite the heterogeneous religious consistence of the population
(Catholics, Muslims and Orthodox), the country is an example of religious harmony and
peaceful coexistence and has never experienced interreligious tensions among its habitants.
The contribution of travel & tourism to the GDP of the country accounts for 17.1% of the
total output, while 4.4% of total employment.28

7.1.2 Problems
Due to Albanias long isolation during the communist era, this country in transition to the
liberal market faces problems that hinder tourism development as well. These problems include mostly local management issues29 30:

Problems in public infrastructure:

extremely poor railway system
insufficient bikeway system
the operation of only 1 out of 6 airports as both national and international due to
Tirana International Airports shareholder companys monopoly over Albanian airspace
Merely improper waste disposal
Illegal construction
Tax evasion
Illegal hunting
Unqualified accommodation classification system.
Noise pollution in urban areas

27

Albania opens huge Cold War bunker to public as an expo-center http://www.bbc.com/news/worldeurope-30160201 , BBC (November 22th 2014)
28
WWTC, Travel & Tourism Economic Impact, Albania, p.4 (2014)
29
M. Xhaferri, Challenges & Prospects of Tourism in Albania, http://www.dukagjinicollege.eu/libri2/81Xhaferri.M%28451-454%29.pdf
30
I. Kaduku, The Past, the Present and the Future of Albanian Tourism,
http://www.scientificpapers.org/wpcontent/files/1218_Ilir_Kaduku_The_Past_the_Present_and_the_Future_of_the_Albanian_Tourism.pdf , ScientificPapers.org, (Issue 8, February 2012)

14

Unclear land ownership in regional areas

7.1.3 Current strategies, aims & perspective

The previous years lack of clear strategy on tourism development has recently altered to an
urban planning and tourism development, following the needs for coordination on both areas, after the view of newly elected government. Thus, the relevant ministry, the Ministry of
Urban Development and Tourism, now operates as the main institution undertaking processes for both fields of development. Among its main tools, the ministry has started applying:
a demolition campaign of illegal constructions along the countrys coastline, giving
legalization possibilities only to some illegal owners under certain strict conditions
restrictions on the construction of new buildings along beaches, near forests and water areas.
mass campaigns of waste collection along the coastline and nationally protected
woods.
implementation of a strict architectural and urbanistic plan on traditional rural tourism areas in order to conserve regional identity for both locals and inbound tourists.31
This model of development is based on a partnership of public authorities and financing
private sector in the country, while a big percentage of investments is made up by for financial institutions. Tourism is now seen more as a priority sector for the development of
the national economy, and tourism strategy coincides with national developmental plan.
Among other concrete goals, which have started to be slightly reached, are included:

The formalization and standardization of hotel and accommodation market

The formation of an integrated base for tourism information, operators, structures
and tourist sites
Fiscal reformations for the reduction of VAT on tourist services
Cooperation with neighboring and allied states on economic development

There have been also implemented 3 key programmes with some promising success:

The Cultural & Historic Tourism Programme, that focuses on protected zones
and culture monuments, promoting tradition, through the development of family
business and SMEs in cooperation with elite tourism operators

31

Programme of the 2013-2017 Government, http://www.turizmi.gov.al/files/userfiles/Programi-i-Qeverise2013-2017.pdf , Albanian Ministry of Urban Development & Tourism, p.35-36 (2013)

15

The Ecotourism Programme, that is based on natural tourism resources, involving rivers, forests, lakes, canyons, natural habitats of fauna and flora etc., the ecologic use of them and the creation of vital infrastructure and management for its sustainability.

The Alpine & Coastal Tourism Programme, which aims in investing on infrastructure and services, regarding mountainous and coastal populated areas that have
a potential for tourism.

Furthermore, the image that the country is presenting over international media, conferences
and events is positively growing. In 2011, Albania was ranked by Lonely Planet as the no.1
destination to be visited, surpassing mainstream destinations such as Brazil or Italy.32 In
2013, an article of Huffington Post outlined 10 reasons why visit Albania.33 The New
York Times ranked Albania as 4th among 52 countries to be visited.34 Recently, Albania has
been officially dubbed in tourism media as "Go Your Own Way". Previously, it was promoted as "A New Mediterranean Love" and "Europe's Last Secret35. Foreign media have
shown interest in the country, i.e. 30 foreign tourist agencies bringing adventure tourism in
Albania in 201436, the National Tourism Agency (NTA) being present in most international
tourism venues, and the National Ministry of Tourism taking part in worldwide conferences, such as Reputation War: How to fight against decades of bad reputation (Paris
2015)37 or promoting religious tourism.

7.2 Zambia
7.2.1 Interesting Facts & Highlights

32

Top countries for 2011, http://www.lonelyplanet.com/travel-tips-and-articles/76164 , Lonely Planet (October 30th, 2010)
33
"10 Reasons 2013 Is The Time To Visit Albania". http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leyla-giray/albaniatourism-2013_b_2352931.html L. Giray, Huffington Post. (December 27th 2012).
34
"52 Places to Go in 2014" http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/01/10/travel/2014-places-togo.html?_r=0 . The New York Times. (January 10th 2014)
35
Facts about Albania NTA http://www.albania.al/about-albania
36
30 foreign tourist agencies promote Albanian Adventure Tourism, NTA,
http://www.albania.al/content/30-foreign-tourist-agencies-bring-adventure-tourism-albania , (August 29th
2014)
37
Albanian Ministry of Urban Development & Tourism, Reputation War Conference),
http://www.turizmi.gov.al/al/newsroom/fjalime/fjala-e-ministres-eglantina-gjermeni-ne-konferencen-e-3-tenderkombetare-reputation-war-ne-paris , (January 19th 2015)

16

Zambia is famous as the land of legendary African walking safari, home to Victoria falls,
the wild Zambezi River, abundant wild fauna and flora. Though still among the least developed countries in the world, it is also acknowledged as one of the safest ones to visit. It offers a range of Safari experiences, being renowned for having some of the worlds best
Game Parks areas, from mild to wilder encounters with nature, magnificent waterfalls of
other rivers, sport activities such as rafting, kayaking, canoeing or walking with wild animals, and contact with authentic villager life in its remote rural areas. As Africas country
with the most water resources, i.e. 5 big lakes and many rivers, it is also famous for tigerand fly-fishing.38

7.2.2 Problems
Unfortunately, the tourism sector in the country is underperforming, attracting only 3% of
tourists visiting the Sub-Saharan Africa. The tourism sector, though included in the 5th National Development Plan as 1 out of 4 sectors that are essential for economic development,
is currently being neglected. Most of its governments have contributed little financial support because they have viewed tourism as a foreign-dominated sector with a high financial
leakage. Both the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) and the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Natural Resources have lacked financial resources to promote tourism development, despite having a potential to do so.39
Among specific problems, the most important ones include40 41:

Small and fragmented existence of the private sector

Distrust towards the private sector from the government and inconsistent policies
Poor business climate
Weak incentive structure
High cost environment
o Operating costs (i.e. fuel and energy)
o Fiscal charges (taxes, licence fees etc.)
o Input costs (raw materials)

38

Zambian National Tourism Agency, http://www.zambiatourism.com/

Private Sector & Development, Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Issue 7 (September 2010), p.6
40
P. Magwuto-Ngwira, Why Zambian tourism marketing has failed?
http://www.lusakatimes.com/2011/03/23/zambian-tourism-marketing-failed/ , Lusaka Times (March 23rd
2011)
41
Zambia beckons new wave of tourists, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5071788.stm , BBC News
(June 13th 2006)
39

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Limited accommodation capacity

Underdeveloped infrastructure
Underexploitation of nature tourism
Non-participation of local communities in profiting

Especially, nature tourism appears to be an underexploited sector, which could potentially

relieve poverty. Habitants around parks, for instance, are 30% poorer than average rural
residents due to their lands isolation and infertility. Thus their link to the markets and public services is limited.42 Specifically, communities near the famous Game Park areas do not
have a great share of revenues acquired from these activities:

Figure 5: the 1998 Zambia Wildlife Act (ZAWA) provised for coummunities to participate in wildlife management
through Community Resources Boards (CRBs- i.e. schools, health centers etc.) , Source: NRCF (2007)

7.2.3 Suggested strategies & perspective

As previous governments should have already done, current government needs to overcome
conspiracy theories about the private sector and its involvement in tourism activities. The
Zambian Government, in fact, overvalues financial leakages deriving from tourist activities
and ignores the fact that tourism contributes to 6-10% of national GDP, being second only
to manufacturing sector (10%).
More precisely, governance should provide ground for the private sector through43:

Links with beneficial overseas service providers, that rather serve Zambian tourism enterprises sell their products through marketing, insurance and flights than exploit the whole value chain. Thus, linkage with the foreign participation in the sec-

42

Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries? Private Sector & Development, Issue 7, p.8 (September 2010)
43
H. Suich, J. Busch, N. Barbancho, Economic Impacts of Transfrontier Conservation Areas, CI South Africa, p.79 (2005)

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tor does not cause leakage or repatriation of profits, since also tourism sector in
Zambia consists mostly of small, local operators and not big chains.

Nature tourism. It is measured that every 3 nature tourists generating one full-time
job. Nature tourists contribute to 16% of Zambian exports, 6.5% of Zambias GDP,
more than 6% of wages and net income of unincorporated business, 7% of state revenues, and almost 10% of the formal sector employment, which roughly means indirectly 54.000 jobs.44

Investments on infrastructure and communication. Zambia receives fewer tourists than it could have, because of its poor infrastructure. Being far from seaports
and intercontinental airports is a weak point, which could be fought through investments for better road access.

Management of protected areas and inclusion of local communities in revenues

Policy incentives (i.e. VAT exceptions or reductions for tourism-related business,

visa exemptions

Although there is a lot of effort needed to attain the aims above, the contribution of tourism
to Zambias GDP has already been favorable and promising in comparison with other sectors. Looking for sustainable sources of economic growth, properly managing and giving
incentives, policy heads in Zambia may prove tourisms greater economic benefits and its
contribution to poverty alleviation.45

44

The Real Economic Impact of Nature Tourism in Zambia, NRCF, p.13, 2007.
Should Tourism be promoted in developing countries?, Private Sector & Development, Issue 7, p.10 (September 2010)
45

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Zambia beckons new wave of tourists, BBC News (2006)
H. Suich, J. Busch, N. Barbancho, Economic Impacts of Transfrontier Conservation Areas, CI
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The Real Economic Impact of Nature Tourism in Zambia, NRCF (2007)

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