Thesis ( M Tech( Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011 / This study investigates the perceptions of the accommodation sector regarding the tourism value chain in the Western Province of Rwanda. The fact that the study could assist local communities with poverty alleviation in Rwanda has raised the issue of how the perceptions of the accommodation sector could be used to enhance the value chain so that it would benefit all the participants in the industry in that province.The study is undertaken to improve the understanding of the perceptions held by accommodation service providers regarding the tourism value chain. In order to achieve this, the researcher set out to gain a greater knowledge of tourism development planning, as well as to investigate the possible socio-cultural, economic and political impacts that could follow the effective implementation of the tourism value chain on the accommodation sector. Both the positive and the negative impacts of a tourism value chain on the local communities in Western Province of Rwanda were examined.In terms of the national tourism policy, tourism has become a priority. It is regarded as an economic activity that can contribute more than any other sector to poverty alleviation. This study therefore examines the current perceptions held by the practitioners of the industry as they develop tourism products and services in the country. In addition, the study examines the key benefits and concerns of the accommodation establishments about the tourism value chain

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010 / This study investigated the extent of local community involvement in tourism development and conservation activities in eastern Rwanda by using Akagera National Park as a case study. The study used a structured questionnaire to collect data from local residents, while face-to-face interviews were conducted with key informants from Rwanda National Tourism and Conservation Agency and local government officials as means to obtain deeper insights. Tosun (2000:626) contends that community involvement in tourism can be considered from at least two viewpoints, namely the decision-making process that would involve community participation and the benefits of tourism development such as employment and business opportunities. Results of this research suggest that community participation in Akagera National Park has been recognised by Rwanda National Tourism and Conservation Agency and the government of Rwanda only in the sense of helping local people to obtain economic benefits via employing them as workers within industry [though, still at a low rate], whilst encouraging them to operate small scale businesses such as curio shops, rather than create opportunities for them to have a say in the process of decision making of tourism management and conservation policies. Although Rwanda has opted for a decentralised system in its rural development plans, it is evident that it has failed to do so in the areas of tourism and conservation - at least in Akagera National Park. The researcher believes that in the light of the research results, the decision making system for Akagera National Park tourism and conservation development plans is still highly centralised, which, conversely, work against participatory development approach. The study recommends that local communities in the Akagera area should be consulted and involved in development programmes within their villages from the start, as this process will present a significant step towards ensuring more adequate participation in conservation and tourism. Finally, the researcher recommends that further studies should be conducted to engage in evaluation of impacts and successes of governmental policy of 5% revenue sharing, which should be implemented in communities around Akagera National Park.

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2009. / Tourism is regarded as the fastest growing industry in the world. Africa was identified at the World Investment Conference in Geneva (WAIPA, 2005) as one of the continents with a significant potential for developing tourism. Located in sub-Saharan Africa, Rwanda is a low income, landlocked and densely populated country in Africa. Tourism provides the best alternative for economic development to Rwanda which does not have mineral resources unlike most African countries. The development of tourism can contribute a lot to this country through reduction of the level of poverty, creation of job opportunities as well as contributing to the national income. However, the tourism industry in Rwanda is still in its early stages due to the 1994 war. Most of the parks re-opened in 1998/1999, and still concentrate on low volume of tourists. Until now Rwanda is not recognised among the known tourist destinations in Africa; it is believed to be a less developed place for tourists. This study presents barriers to tourism development in Rwanda as perceived by domestic and international tourists as well as workers in the tourism sector of Rwanda. The study was conducted in the four provinces of Rwanda and the capital city, Kigali. A quantitative design using two cross-sectional questionnaires was utilised to establish the opinions of the participants. A sample of 426 participants, including 68 international tourists, 182 domestic tourists as well as 176 workers in the tourism sector was selected to participate in the study.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Tourism and Hospitality Management in the Faculty of Business at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2008 / Taping into a growing global tourism market, the government of Rwanda has been marketing and promoting tourism as being considered as one of the sectors that will help the country achieve its economic targets through revenue gains and job creation. However, Rwanda’s tourism product has understandably, been aimed largely at gorilla tourism so as to raise much needed foreign currency. While this has been proving positive as regards achieving industry targets, dependence on an exclusive product could be detrimental to the industry in the future. This research that was carried out in Rwanda’s Museums focused on a significant form of tourism in Africa, namely heritage tourism with specific reference to its development and promotion in Rwanda. The results reveal that heritage tourism, and domestic heritage tourism in particular, is experiencing growth with genocide museums playing a large part in this growth. The findings further suggest that the heritage management, especially marketing of heritage tourism can be improved. The research provides several procedures for improvement in management of heritage destination that include the assessment of heritage resources, the role of tourism managers, and different marketing strategies for heritage sites.

Thesis (DTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / Prior studies have shown that the information communication technology sector worldwide is perceived as a transformative and enabling tool for the other economic activities to improve citizens’ lives. In a Rwandan context, information communication technology integration in economic sector activities such as tourism, with the adoption of a value chain approach, is thought to be an answer to a number of social and economic challenges, including unemployment, customer care services, and poor information knowledge. In combination with the tourism sector, it is possible that job creation opportunities could benefit unemployed Rwandans, particularly the young, where information communication technology is identified as a business in itself, and an enabling tool to improve inter-economic and crosscutting activities in a growing economy. Despite mixed results from various studies, information communication technology for a tourism village could be an enabling tool for national and regional development, if priority focus on ICT and tourism quality infrastructures is maintained. Research on the evolving nature of the information communication technology sector, through tourism activities in Rwanda, could yield many off-farm jobs besides solely agrarian activities. The study was conducted on an extensive scale, in order to facilitate the generalisation of the results, employing 720 tourism stakeholders’ surveys, ten interviews with government tourism officials, and ten focus group discussions to garner both quantitative and qualitative data. A mixed research method was used to minimise possible research bias and maximise the accuracy of the findings in the four provinces and Kigali City in Rwanda. Of the 720 questionnaires distributed, 615 were usable. Regarding the interviews with government officials, focus group discussions, field observations and secondary data analysis, the researcher found that the information communication technology contribution to tourism stakeholders’ economic lives was at variance with residents’ perceptions in the provinces and districts, and contradicted the information communication technology benefits of connectivity, internet accessibility and usability in their locality. It was also confirmed that information communication technology contributions to tourism stakeholders were at a very low level, where the contribution was limited to telephone subscriptions and their uses, for example for mobile money transfers. The future of information communication technology contributions to tourism stakeholders is positive, if integrated value chain approaches are adopted to benefit poor communities at a tourist destination being visited. A model of an information communication technology village for the development of a tourism village is proposed. This could serve as a catalyst to measure the impacts on both the information communication technology and tourism sectors discussed in this study. More importantly, it was clearly found that the culture of approaching local communities in the process of policy drafting, or any developmental programme, is not present in Rwanda, and this was shown as a critical issue because of the costly nature of implementation of changes. Consequently, this study found that there was potential to support projections for information communication technology policies to achieve the objectives of sustainable development through tourism, promoting rural development, and a reduction of poverty in general / Rwandan Government, through the Ministry of Education