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World Tourism. The Development of Tourism in Goa, India. Activities. Create a table + and – of tourism in Goa under the following headings: environment, economy, social/cultural influences. Fill this in as we go along. Can the enclave model be related to Goa?
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Activities • Create a table + and – of tourism in Goa under the following headings: environment, economy, social/cultural influences. Fill this in as we go along. • Can the enclave model be related to Goa? • Overall, has tourism been a good development plan?
Goa – An Introduction • Goa is a small state on the west coast of India with a population of 1.16 million. It was a Portuguese colony for 300 years (1440-1740) although the Portuguese influence was restricted to the coastal areas. We can see this particularly well in the 'Old Conquest' area, which is the part of Goa most popular with European tourists In contrast, Indian tourists tend to visit areas further inland which have Hindu temples, such as Ponda. • The tourist boom began in the 1960s when young people, rejecting conventional society of the developed countries, travelled to Goa. They brought 'hippie' tourism to this part of India and even in 1995 all foreign tourists in Goa are known locally as 'hippies'.
The government’s plan • In the mid-1980s, the Indian Government drew up a Tourist Development Plan designating Goa as a tourist development area. • The plan proposed a wide range of tourist facilities with large five-star hotels as well as smaller, cheaper hotels.
Environmental concerns • Building close to the shore line -the law was then changed permitting hotel companies to build as close as 200 meters to the beaches. • Increasing numbers of high-rise buildings - Originally, the legal limit for the height of buildings across all of Goa was two storeys, so that no building should be higher than the palm trees. However, pressure from hotel developers has meant a change in building regulations so that there are now three- and four-storey hotels
More serious environmental concerns • The sewerage system -During the peak season, between October and May, there is a massive influx of tourists to Goa. However, there is no adequate sewerage system to cope with the increase in numbers of people. Most hotels, therefore, discharge their wastes directly into the sea. • Water supply - The hotels in Goa require enormous quantities of fresh water for washing, swimming pools and the irrigation of gardens. In fact, clean drinking water is piped directly to some hotels, while many local people do not even have water on tap in their homes. • Waste disposal This is a relatively recent problem. The hotels, restaurants and shops buy food packed in plastic containers which soon litter the streets. At present, there is no co-coordinated refuse collection or waste management in Goa.
Child Prostitution – profits from tourism rarely reach the local people. • Acid parties & raves – children skip school to peddle drugs to western tourists. • Tourists insult locals by sunbathing nude. • One 5* hotel consumes as much water as 5 villages. • One tourist consumes 28x more electricity than a local Goan. • No real respect or understanding given to local carnivals & culture. • Tourist boats – pollute the water & scare fish away. • Many beaches inaccessible – problematic for fishermen. • Many palm trees cut down for development.
From ‘The Curtain of Affluence’Look behind the curtain,Tourist, and see what I have seen.You're living an illusion,but my life is reality.
Belize- An Introduction • British colony between 1638 and 1981, Belize is a small country on the edge of the Caribbean Sea. Belize particularly welcomes tourists who seek the attractions of a varied, natural, unspoilt environment. You will experience the wilds of over 2000 km2 untouched mangrove swamps, wetland savanna, mountain pine forests as well as tropical rain forests. In every area there is a vast mix of wildlife including the jaguar, howler monkey, tapir and manatee. At the coast, we can offer you the longest barrier reef in the western hemisphere - second longest in the world! • You can also see tremendous archaeological sites in Belize. Remains of the Mayan.
Development Strategy • Belize is almost totally undeveloped and only 15 per cent of its land area is cultivated). As a country that recently gained its independence from the British (1981) Belize is now keen to increase its income. In 1992 Belize only had a per capita GNP of US$2200 while 20 per cent of its population of 203 957 were unemployed. The Belize government therefore sees tourism as essential for increasing foreign exchange earnings.
Activities • 1. According to Butler's model, at what stage of development is tourism in Belize? • 2. Decide whether you would like to visit Belize. List those features that: • attract you, • are not interesting to you.
The tourism industry begins • The government of Belize advertises the country as 'friendly and unspoilt', and as 'Belize - so natural'. Although the country is in the early stages of developing its tourist industry, it is keen to avoid the problems associated with mass tourism - pollution; high-rise resorts; crowding; a deteriorating natural environment. Belize therefore promotes small-scale development and tries to foster sustainable tourism. • However, each year increasing numbers of visitors are arriving in Belize. In 1994, tourist arrivals were about 200 000 per annum but the average growth rate stands at 43 per cent. Much of this growth is because of Belize's position close to some of the world's mass tourist resorts. It is only a short trip from the tourist 'crowds' of Miami and New Orleans in the USA, and Cancun in Mexico, to the relative remoteness of Belize
Sustainable tourism • The government of Belize has designated over 30 per cent of the entire land area as national reserves. As part of this scheme, farming is banned in the reserves because the government is concerned that both traditional, subsistence, 'slash-and-burn' cultivation and more commercial farming will upset the local ecosystem - and so threaten the country's ecotourism potential. • The government has, though, tried to consider the subsistence farmers living on the reserves. Thus, efforts are being made to incorporate the farmers' needs with the needs of the growing tourist industry. For example, at the Community Baboon Sanctuary, local farmers have agreed to limit their slash-and-burn practices and so protect the habitat of the native howler monkeys. In return, the farmers receive an income from work in tourism as more tourists are attracted to the area.
Development • The challenge for Belize's government is to cope with increasing numbers of tourists while protecting the country's fragile ecosystem. Development, of whatever size, therefore requires careful planning. • Along the coast, development has involved the clearing of mangrove swamps in the north to make room for hotels. However, mangroves perform vital ecological functions without which, the whole coastal area is at risk. Primarily, the mangroves provide rich feeding grounds for fish. Secondly, the swamps protect against coastal erosion. • On the island of Caye Caulker, the recent building of an airstrip has destroyed nesting sites. It has also created a lake of stagnant water which may provide a breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitoes.
Write a dialogue between: • Belize's minister for tourism, trying to promote tourism for maximum economic gain, and • the environment minister, trying to minimise the impact of tourism and protect the welfare of local people. a Consider the tensions and problems these ministers face including: • how tourism might affect the lives of people living in rural Belize; • how increasing numbers of tourists are putting pressure on the government to develop along more commercial lines. b Try to agree on a plan for the future of tourism in Belize.
