THAMES VALLEY UNIVERSITY

Globalisation & Global Challenges:

Course : POST GRADUATE IN TOURISM MANAGMENT

Module tutor : PATRICK MUIGAI

Module Code : TH70018E

Number : 21001782

To what extent the process of globalisation will affect the growth of its tourism and hospitality industry and how

At the time when the global community can perform like a constructive force, a number of countries like Egypt faces its
side effects in a lot of aspects. Nevertheless, it will be better to examine various effects of globalization, along with the
foreign policies in getting more familiar with the requirement for a global community work out in self-governing progress
and to fulfill the requirements of a global community.

Tourism provides every individual a chance to discover and learn about different cultures present in various countries.
‘This industry is flourishing more and more as people are traveling out of their country’ (Map Census, 2006, 4). It is
impossible to deny that every country in the world is at least partially affected by tourism, however it may effect a country
both in positive or negative manner (Cohen, 2008, 99).

Globalisation and Tourism: The Case of Egypt

Egypt as a country is tremendously affluent in its chronological background. Its economy is very much dependent on
tourism (Abdel Latif Wahba and Alaa Shahine Feb 2010). The entire industry of tourism is dependent upon the
prehistoric monuments and artifacts of the ancient times, however in current years there has been an enormous effort
made to produce more up to date attractions for tourists like golf courses etc. The mixture of the historic and latest
attractions include the prime sector of the Egyptian financial system. Tourism is seen as the most important sources of
hard money. It is considered as an effectual factor to a country’s economy and community development. But most
prominently, when someone first talk about Egypt, people straightforwardly focus in mind the Great Pyramids present in
Giza. Pyramids are without doubt one of Egypt’s most visited memorials and one of the world’s biggest tourist
attractions. The prehistoric Greeks used to see pyramids as one of the Seven Wonders in the World (Info Please 2010).

Environmental:

Along with host of benefits from tourism there are also many drawbacks (United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP), 2001). Due to large amounts of tourists flocking Egypt every year, the country has a problem of soaring
pollution. Smoke emitted from vehicles and planes results in acid rain which eventually falls on the historic monuments
which are by and large made of limestone that is coming down (EEAA-EIMP 2010). Hence, it is must for the government
to take some defensive steps in order to work against or at least reduce the gust of many of these ecological factors in
order to save and insure the continuance of the tourist attractions and the health of the tourist. Under Developed countries
are trying to expand their role in tourism industry since most of the countries are realizing the fact that this is amongst
most effective ways of earning revenue (Holmes, 2004, 40 & Obelisk Investments 2010).

Countries like Egypt, inclusive, need to concentrate and promote greener ways of tourism in order to maintain the heritage
they posses which is not only a national heritage but an international one (new7wonders 2010). Over exploitation of the
natural resources may be beneficial in short term but may just cease to exist for profits, in long term.

Socio-Cultural:
Globalization has started creating an impact on country’s religious values and cultural practices too. Egypt, sits in a
precarious position on the international stage. It was once a colony -- a factor that most certainly contributed to the
shaping of this nation, particularly in terms of its outlook on international relations. Max Boot argues that colonialism
(particularly on behalf of France and Britain) contributed to suppressing Islam, which could be partially responsible for
why dangerous fundamentalist movements cropped up in countries such as Egypt (Knowles, 2004, 164). Thus,
international pressures have caused and propagated turmoil within the Middle East.

Egypt is most certainly not free from cultural influence from of the Western world. Such as, the American media and
lifestyle impact Egypt’s middle class almost as much as Israel's (Relegious Intolerance 2010). This could prove to be
positive, in the sense that Egyptians are casting aside fundamentalist ways, but at the same time such influence can be
dangerous if the entire population is not on board with U.S. ideals and interests. While the middle class is becoming more
westernized, it still supports the Muslim Brotherhood and Egyptian tradition, causing the country to experience internal
conflicts. Such changes in the society and beliefs of the people is seen to increase the gap between both the classes in
Middle East (Relegious Intolerance 2010).

All in all Egypt seems to be a growing country amongst other middle eastern countries. It needs to preserve, protect and
promote its religious and national values while embracing the new wave of cultural change in a manner that won't bring
out clashes or resentments amongst its people. These efforts and policies will help the country maintain and acheive the
tourism revenues it hopes to attain.

Political:

Moreover, with a dominant role in Middle Eastern politics, Egypt is also gripped by external strife and must act as a key
player in any conflict -- whether as a mediator, or (unfortunately) as a contributor to the violence at hand (Khan, 2006).
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict illustrates Egypt's contribution to the international scene, for better or worse. Having
declared war against Israel in the fifties after Israel's conquest of the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt has had an obligation to
continually play a role in the dispute ever since. Meetings between Palestinian and Israeli diplomats are currently being
held in Cairo, for example. Egypt's strive for peaceful negotiation even in the face of war must be commended.

Nieghbouring countries of Egypt are amongst the most troubled ones in the middle eastern region. Especially the presence
of Israel and Palestine which are in constant conflicts and the danger of a sudden war is at bay. Most recently (Telegraph
UK, 2010) on 13th April the Israel's intelligence has found that its nationals maybe in threat of kidnappings by the
Egyptian religious militants.

Unfortunately, Egypt has also acted as a negative force in the Arab world. The Muslim Brotherhood -- which is known to
have connections with extremist Islamic groups, such as Al'Qaida -- is prominent in all Middle Eastern countries, but it
was originally formed in Egypt ( khalil Al-anani 2009)
This group continues to have influence, targeting both the poor sectors of society and the middle class. This is a worry to
international observers concerned with the level of democracy prevalent in Egypt.

The nature of Egyptian foreign policy is as complex as the country's position on the international stage in terms of
tourism. The concept of legitimacy is most important to Egyptian politics (Diaa Rashwan 2010). Egypt possesses a
weaker democracy and requires a great deal of foreign aid and intervention in order to improve its tourism policies (J. S.
Carpenter 2009). Following a legitimate agenda may be telling of a country's level of tourism, but at times it is not.
Legitimacy is a tricky subject, and the international community often finds it difficult to decide whether or not to grant
legitimacy to another country. In weak democracies, governments like that of Egypt frequently attempt to veil their
governance in a false mask of authenticity whilst continuing their oppressive behavior, and succeed in obtaining
legitimacy from other countries even though they do not truly deserve it (Social Watch, 2005, 68).

It can be deduced from the above observations that due to its geographical location and political ties and neighbours taht
come along with Egypt, in my view, has to tactfully deal with tis policies in order to stay at the top of the tourism chain. It
also needs to help neighbouring countries in maintaining peace as this helps the image and tourism of Egypt to great
extent.

Economic:
Tourism is one of the main sources of revenue for Egypt (Tourism Review 2006). Certainly, it is due to globalization that
Egypt's economy depends as much on western democracies as it does on its Middle Eastern partners, which may
contribute to bring peace to this part of the world. However, this can undoubtedly have negative consequences in Egypt,
as its government struggles to juggle both Western and Eastern influences. How Egypt's government decides to handle its
foreign policy in response to external pressures in order to improve its tourism and relations with the rest of the world is
of interest to any aspiring political scientist concerned with troubled democracies in dangerous areas of the world.

Egypt as a country is situated in a position that disallows it to remain completely fundamentalist in nature. Second to
Israel, it is the largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid, and its tourism industry, the second largest in the country, grosses over
10% of the country's GDP. In order for Egypt's important tourist industry to grow, the nation must prove that it is a safe
place for travelers (Reid, 2003, 157). Also, the World Bank has been aiding Egypt in creating a plan to stabilize its
economy for the future -- a positive effect emanating from increased globalization and an apparent will of the
international community to lend a helping hand to countries experiencing poverty and over-population. But in order to
keep obtaining aid from the United States, Canada, and various other countries, Egypt must maintain a certain degree of
legitimacy within the United Nations (Burton, 2008, 07).

Egypt, as well as most of the Middle East, has been in so many continuous "states of emergency", that its people continue
to be governed in this nature in spite of international pressures. (Gottfried, 2006, 466) Executive authorities, for example,
confront national emergencies through the creation of special court systems, and through the military. (Connell, 2005, 61)
This is how Egypt's tourism regulations have been handled. When terrorists bombed a coach of tourists several years ago,
the government responded by implementing mandatory military service at all checkpoints and historic sites. No danger
has resulted since, but this method of protection must be questioned as it could potentially turn coercive (Holmes, 2004,
41).

It is evident that, in some respects, international pressure can be a negative force for transitional democracies like Egypt.
On the other hand, it is necessary for the international community to have its eye on Egypt in order to assess its quality of
tourism, and reveal key problems within Egypt's government that disallows further consolidation. It is known that Egypt
violates human rights, consequently reaching a degree of illegitimacy within the UN. Egypt's military and authorities are
corrupt in dealing with criminals, and the country has always been plagued with a "torture epidemic". Indeed, while
torture in Egypt had typically been used against political dissidents, it is now affecting large numbers of ordinary citizens
who find themselves in police custody as suspects or in connection with criminal investigations (Chalmer, 2008). The UN
is aware of such atrocities, but now must find a way to punish the Egyptian government -- especially because Egypt's
increasing rate of torture has been legitimized by the war on terror, which has enormously affect its tourism.

Tourism in Egypt has undergone some reforms due to pressure on behalf of the UN and the World Bank in order to foster
democracy. One of these reforms is particularly evident -- although Israelis are not allowed to become citizens in Egypt,
they are allowed to visit the Sinai Peninsula. Also, even though Egypt tends to have a strict refugee and asylum seeker
policy, it has been increasingly opening its borders. It is currently aiding countries in Africa to cope with HIV, allowing
asylum seekers to move to Egypt temporarily before attempting to go to the United States (Jaffcott, 2008).

In some ways, Egypt has been progressively conducting its international affairs to coincide with the "democratic norm",
largely due to the positive influences of the global community (Cline, 2008). At the same time, its government tends to
cover its affairs in a false mask of legitimacy in order to continue to obtain favors. However, much of this is due to
globalization leaving negative effect on its globalization.

To evaluate foreign policy is not always the best method of determining the impact of globalization on tourism of a
country, but it is good at determining how its historical legacies have shaped it, and the response its government has had
to the nations surrounding it. These days, international relations inevitably revolve around three centers of power: the
"superpower", the multinational corporation and NGO, and finally a multinational center of law -- all of which have the
power to either promote tourism, or efficiently impede it. It is no surprise that no country in the world is entirely free from
effect of globalization and same is the case with Egypt, which is politically, culturally, and financially oppressed nation to
a degree (for better or for worse).

It is becoming increasingly difficult for Egypt to remain sovereign, and its civil participants to ignore effects of
globalization on its tourism. Egypt obtains legitimacy on an international basis for acting in many democratic ways, even
though it maintains a great deal of authority upon its own people. It has wavered in promoting human rights at home and
abroad, but is legitimized by the "war on terror." It possesses an inflexible immigration and refugee policy, but this is
further encouraged by the United States. The sheer amount of pressure globalization has upon Egypt's tourism, removes
sole blame of Egypt's government for such types of issues. It is of great importance for government to take steps in order
to save tourism in Egypt.

Technological:

With the advent of the low cost airlines, cheaper transport modes and increasing accessibility from majority of European
airports the tourism in Egypt is on rapid rise (Property Select 2008). The availability of internet and broadband connection
is also advantageous for the tourism industry as it provides the best tools for the promotion, operation and maintenance of
the industry. Through help of internet it is now possible to book the airtickets, tours, hotels, cars, transport, etc right from
the comfort of your living room.

Conclusion:

After carefully studying all the PESTLE factors on case of Egypt's case it can be summarised that the globalisation in the
tourism industry has benefited Egypt on various levels however the country needs to battle and constantly keep itself on
its toes in order to survive the competition from Asian countries and other middle eastern countries. It is essential the
country spends the resources at its disposal wisely. Also this case gives us an idea of the whole process rendered in any
country that is in race for global tourism competition. Hence concluding on the topic it can be deduced from the whole
article that the effects globalisation will continue to have a vast influence on the tourism industry no matter what changes
and now with globalisation catching trend and the whole world slowly becoming a global village its effects are ever more
powerful.

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