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International tourism has quickly become one of
the most important economic industries in the world.’+
In the 1950s and 1960s, the most popular destinations for
tourists from developed nations were other developed
nations. However, as international travel gained popularity,
tourists became more “savvy” and more cost-conscious,
and they began malung “intercultural” excursions
to underdeveloped regions of the wor1d.h tourists searched
for adventure and bargains, destinations began to include
Mica, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. In 1987, theThrd
World’s market share of international tourist spending
amounted to 29.10/0;5 that figure is steadily increasing.
Table 1 illustrates the economic importance and
social impact that tourism has had worldwide. It is equally
important to understand who is investing in tourism
development and who is profiting. As many economically
poor and resource rich countries struggle under the
burden of onerous foreign debts, tourism development
is seen as a panacea for economic woes. Foreign lenders
agree with, and encourage, this belief by providing capital
for tourism development.’ As tourism around the
world has grown, there has been a concomitant rise in
researchers’ interest in studying the economic, political
and social costs and benefits of tourism development for
native and guest alike.
Unfortunately, one area in which reporting remains
biased is the impact of tourism development on health.
Indeed, if health and tourism issues are addressed at all
it is usually in reference to tourists’ health problems
(e.g., travelers’ diarrhea, malaria).”’The majority of studies
on natives’ health focus almost exclusively on sexually
transmitted diseases (STDs). The literature has few, if
any, systematic studies that document the impact of tourism development on the general health and wellbeing
of natives. Possible reasons for the lack of data on
natives’ health are the inherent difficulties in measuring
meaningful differences in health status, and, perhaps most
importantly, lack of funding for this type of study.
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Title Description
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Requirements for Tourism Development |
Generally, there are six requirements for a country.
I. Attractions: These can include beaches, ountains, forests, animals, people, archaeological ruins, shopping,
sex, etc.
2. Social Infrastructure: Some level of development that
allows for hospitals, transportation, some economic stability,
some degree of protection gainst personal
injury and theft.
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Benefits of Tourism Development |
Many capital-poor Third World nations in need of
a profitable industry look to tourism as a solution to their
economic problems. There are numerous (and often
confusing) measures of the economic impact of tourism.
The most important measures include tourism's impact
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Consequences of Tourism Development |
The vast majority of books, papers, and monographs
dealing with development issues and tourism
report that there are considerably more associated costsand problems than benefits.
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Is Tourism the Economic Solution?
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Although numerous potential economic benefits
associated with tourism development are described in the
literature, upon further investigation, many of these benefits
are never realized.The most pervasive problem with
tourism development, regardless of the country, is repatriation of tourist revenue (industry leakage).
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