Community Based Tourism
Finding the Euilibrium in the COMCEC Context
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branding through concerted efforts, high morale, national pride and team spirit besides
high living standards and quality of life for locals, boost in human capital with a focus on
non-elite groups, boost in social capital, namely social bonds, community spirit, social
energy, extended friendships, community life, social resources, informal and formal
community networks, and good neighborliness. Some of these benefits are rather abstract
and hard to measure; however, several CBT applications and case studies investigating the
results of some CBT projects reveal several of these benefits as listed below:
1.5.3.1. Economic Benefits of CBT
 Increased local income: revenues and employment;
 Poverty alleviation;
 Economic recovery;
 Improved infrastructure;
 Harmony with other existing sustainable economic activities;
 Development of linkages among sectors;
 Provision and creation of markets for existing products and services;
 Contribution to balanced development: providing economic diversity, eliminating
economic dependency on a few sectors, improving geographic distribution of
employment and income generation opportunities;
 Increased flow of resources towards local level development initiatives.
1.5.3.2. Socio-cultural Benefits of CBT
 Enhanced human capital- provision of training and education for locals to improve
skills and capacity relevant to planning, production, business development and
management of business related tourism services;
 Enhanced social capital- support on community institutions, improved capacity of,
linkages between, and involvement of public, non-governmental, private, local, civil
society and non-governmental organizations in tourism development;
 Good governance by involvement of participatory planning at all levels;
 Community development- enhanced community identity, sense of pride, social
cohesion, community empowerment and social equity through the participation of
local people in the planning process, development and management as well as
monitoring, reduced emigration and attracting immigration;
 Increased local quality of life- improved local health by development of a sanitation
and sewage system, public facilities and infrastructure, such as roads, water system,
electricity network and telecommunications;
 Preserving and promoting the local culture, historical heritage and natural
resources with the help of increased willingness of community members to
conserve natural, cultural and heritage resources because the generation of income
from the enterprise is directly linked to the existence of CBT;
 Improved inter and intra-cultural relations and links through cultural exchange and
dialogue between local community members and tourists.