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June 2000 Insights Issue #33
Back to Insights #33
Backing the tourist industry in Africa
High growth and employment or high costs and low returns?
Tourism accounts for a higher share of world trade than
cars or oil and is the main export for many small developing countries.
Highly labour intensive, the sector provides vital employment for people
with a wide range of skills, including unskilled. Critics, however,
point out the cost of tourism to the environment, its presumed negative
effects on ‘culture’ and argue that it is dominated by
multinationals and large firms. Why is the industry neglected by
government strategies and aid programmes? Attitudes to the pros and cons
of tourism seem to be shaped by overly pessimistic or optimistic
preconceptions that, given the widely differing impact tourism has from
country to country, need challenging. Research from the Overseas
Development Institute examines how these preconceptions stand up to
scrutiny.
The study examined the size and evolution of the
tourist industry in three countries: Mauritius - significantly dependent
on tourism; South Africa, fast becoming a major world supplier and the
fifth largest exporter amongst developing countries; and Zimbabwe, where
the industry is less developed and tourism is not considered a major
sector. Each preconception is examined below:
| Preconception |
Reality |
| Is tourism a major, fast-growing
potential export and employer? |
Tourism contributes 7 percent of world exports
and is growing faster than exports in general but not as fast as
manufactured exports. It is more labour intensive than
manufacturing but less so than agriculture. |
| Does tourism lead to risky
over-dependence? |
It can do, but usually in small countries likely
anyway to be dependent on a few exports: tourism is no exception.
About 20 percent of Mauritian exports are from tourism, while in
South Africa and Zimbabwe, it accounts for around 6 percent of
exports. |
| Is tourism dominated by a small
number of foreign firms? |
A few companies dominate in each country. In the
countries studied, two to three firms dominate and are nationally
owned with minor regional investment. Yet in Kenya, for example,
foreign ownership dominates. The variation arises from national
conditions rather than the nature of the industry. |
| Do most earnings from tourism go
abroad? |
Yes and no. In Mauritius, tourism, like
manufacturing, is heavily import- dependent whilst tourism in
Zimbabwe and South Africa relies very largely on local supplies.
About 10 percent of spending goes to the foreign agent and around
40 percent to the airline (often national). Of the rest, almost
all is local in South Africa and Zimbabwe with about a third going
abroad in Mauritius. |
| Does tourism damage the environment
and local culture? |
Environmental damage does exist but no worse
than from other industries. Much tourism is based on natural
resources such as beaches or wildlife and tourism- targeted
conservation does exist. Surveys suggested that Mauritian
government fears concerning cultural damage are not shared by the
population. Tourist activities in Mauritius are largely segregated
from the local population whilst they are not in South Africa and
Zimbabwe. |
| Does tourism escape controls? |
Tourism is closely controlled by government
policies through visas, exchange controls, or access for airlines
and is very dependent on infrastructure. |
| Do governments ignore tourism? |
The Mauritian government influences its nature
(luxury destination), its quantity (steady but slow growth) and
its place in development strategy (transition from local ‘production’
to providing tourism services in other African countries). South
African tourism is important but not a priority compared to
policies promoting dispersal of economic activity and
participation by non-whites. In Zimbabwe tourism is
unintentionally disadvantaged by policies designed for industrial
sectors. |
What do these findings imply for the future of the
industry? Tourism is clearly worth promoting given its strong, but not
always overwhelming, advantages as a potential sector within a
development strategy. Policy-makers should be aware that tourism:
- does not necessarily impose exceptional costs
- often shares characteristics and problems with
other sectors
- does not have specific disadvantages.
Greater visibility to donors and host governments
will avoid the sector suffering from policies directed elsewhere.
Services are gradually acquiring profile and better data on their
importance will help.
Contributor(s): Sheila Page
Further information:
Sheila Page
ODI
Portland House
Stag Place
London
SW1E 5DP
UK
Tel: +44 (0)20 7393 1600
Fax: +44 (0)20 7393 1699
Email: s.page@odi.org.uk
Overseas Development Institute
Other related links:
Search
Eldis for sources on trade
Trade
and Enterprise Research Programme, Institute of Development Studies UK
See also:
Tourism
and Development: The evidence from Mauritius, South Africa and Zimbabwe
ODI, London by S. Page (1999).
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