Local Community Involvement and Participation in Tourism Development

Much of the literature on community involvement and participation in tourism development focus on the importance rather than how these can be realized. As a result there has been short of empirical evidence, especially from the grassroots on how these (community involvement and participation) could be achieved for the sustainability of the tourism industry and its contribution to poverty reduction. This book brings together and examines empirically both aspects of community involvement and participation (decision-making process and benefit sharing) along with tourism's contribution to poverty reduction. Its findings are strengthened through the triangulation of both quantitative and qualitative data, the author's two-month period of fieldwork and experience in the study area, coupled with his experience with the wider community in the study country, Tanzania. The book is useful to a wide range of people, particularly those who are interested with the integration of local communities in tourism development. The primary audience is tourism researchers, students, tourism managers, government agencies, non-governmental organizations and other practitioners at community level.