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Tourism Contribution to Communities in Fiji. Alifereti Tawake, JCU PhD student 24 th October, 2009. Outline. Fiji Tourism contribution Tourism ‘leakage’ Community benefits Examples of community projects retaining benefits in communities Reducing leakage Needs. 1.Fiji.
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Tourism Contribution to Communities in Fiji Alifereti Tawake, JCU PhD student 24th October, 2009
Outline • Fiji • Tourism contribution • Tourism ‘leakage’ • Community benefits • Examples of community projects • retaining benefits in communities • Reducing leakage • Needs
1.Fiji • Traditional ways of life and community structures • Land ownership (86% traditional) • Life dependent on the sea and land • Cash dependence increasing
1.Fiji $M Average Foreign Exchange Earnings (2006-2008) Source: Fiji Islands Bureau of Statistics, reproduced from Reserve Bank of Fiji report, 2009
2. Tourism Contribution • 24% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) • Largest gross foreign exchange earner, $892m • Retention rate around, 44% • Benefiting communities (est. <5%, Korovulavula et al., 2006) Source: Reserve Bank of Fiji, 2009
3.Tourism ‘Leakage’ Strategic Assessment of Fiji’s Tourism Development Plan Report (Levett and McNally, 2003) • ‘Leakage’ of economic benefits (64%) • Import of goods, food, drink and services • Travel and packaged deals • Overseas investors repatriate profits ‘export leakages’ • Community oriented activities • Ecotourism as a strategy • Community-based ‘eco-tourism’ run or jointly owned by communities, home stays
4.Community benefits (<5%) • Erosion of benefits • Employment • Land lease • Unequal distribution • Chiefly system • Land owners
5. Example: Village Tours Profits equally distributed
5. Example: Tourism Interpretation • Historical sites • Village history • Plant & animal totems • Medicinal plants • Traditional dances • Traditional ‘feast’
5. Example: Community-Protected Areas Community Managed Forest Parks Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMA)
5. Example: Sponsoring Reef Restoration http://sasalutawamudu.org/donate.php
5. Example: Involving women Printing conservation messages on sulus
5. Example: Involving Youths Adopt-a-tree of reforestation
5. Needs Investment into local projects Research into their performance Enabling policies