Sustainable Destination Management
Strategies in the OIC Member Countries
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assistance, and professional training, in addition to providing emergency assistance in
case of immediate danger. Italy for example has four designated natural World Heritage
sites, and 47 cultural World Heritage sites. Jordan has one designated natural World
Heritage site and five cultural World Heritage sites. In general, the OIC countries have
much lower numbers of listed natural and historical World Heritage sites. With 15 listed
historic World Heritage sites, Turkey has the highest number of historic World Heritage
sites listed among the OIC countries. Compare this to Germany, which has 38 World
Heritage cultural sites, and Mexico, which has 28.
Assign adequate resources to sustainable development efforts. Protected areas can
further develop alternative revenue streams from entry fees (a portion of entry fees for
cultural heritage sites can be allocated to its protection), and private sector funding.
In Kenya, the Kenya Wildlife Service, which manages a number of national parks, uses
revenue generated from visitors to the park to finance its biodiversity and conservation
activities. An example of this is the Lake Nakuru where concession fees from the lease of
two lodges and entrance fees from visitors provide financing for conservation activities.
Issue regulation to protect cultural and natural heritage assets: For example, New
Zealand has several regulations in place to protect cultural heritage assets, including the
Heritage Historic Places Act of 1993 and the National War Memorial Act of 1992.
Establish multilateral organizations charged with the protection of shared natural
or cultural heritage sites: For example, the Baltic Sea Tourism Center – Sustainable
Development Structures for Active Tourism is a multilateral organization involving
Germany, Poland, Lithuania and Sweden, that aims to develop and protect tourism in the
Baltic region and is funded by the EU.
Protect biodiversity: In New Zealand, the Resource Management Act of 1991, published
by the Ministry of Environment, provides guidelines for managing the country’s
environment and natural resources and sets out “national environmental standards” in
several areas, including biodiversity, the coastal environment and land use planning.
In Uganda, the Uganda Wildlife Authority monitors biodiversity in national parks and
sustainable management of wildlife resources. In Jordan, the Mainstreaming Biodiversity
in the Tourism Sector Development in Jordan (BITS) Project, in collaboration with the
UNDP, seeks to ensure that the consideration of biodiversity is a fundamental part of
everyday planning and development for tourism in Jordan.
3. Managing Demand and Seasonality – Destination level
Develop effective carrying capacity policies and practices: Sustainable tourism
involves difficult choices about howmuch is too much. Time and again, the case studies in
this report highlight how uncontrolled or unmanaged tourism can completely overrun
and significantly degrade single destinations, and in some cases, entire cities or countries.
The case study on Italy is instructive, particularly in the specific instances of Venice and
Rome. These observations are reinforced by the benchmarking analysis conducted in
Chapter 3 (OIC Member States versus Global Best Practices). In virtually every category
that deals with governance and regulatory structures, OIC Member States are performing