Does tourism contribute to local livelihoods? : a case study of tourism, poverty and conservation in the Indian Sundarbans
Date
2007
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Publisher
SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP
Abstract
This study examines the contribution of tourism towards improving the livelihoods of local people in a remote island village of the Indian Sundarbans. The Sundarban Tiger Reserve is a major tourism destination and a small number of local people participate in the tourism sector as vendors, boatmen and guides. No village household subsists entirely on tourism-based income since such jobs are seasonal. A majority of the local service providers operate with very little or no capital investment. Yet households participating in tourism-related activity are better off than those who do not. Tourism participants spend 19% more on food and 38% more on non-food items relative to other villagers. Earnings from tourism appear to at least partially finance year-long consumption. Tourism may also have a conservation effect in that the proportion of forestdependent households is significantly lower among tourism dependent households. There is, however, little evidence of any percolation of tourism-related income to non-participating households through intra-village transactions. The study proposes a carefully crafted policy for promoting nature-based tourism with more room for local participation.
Description
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Working Paper
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Keywords
PRO-POOR TOURISM, LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS, LIVELIHOOD OPPORTUNITIES, INCOME GENERATION, PER CAPITA EXPENDITURE, POVERTY ALLEVIATION, FOREST CONSERVATION, SUNDERBAN, INDIA