published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

The Pangnirtung Tourism Program was initiated by the Government of the Northwest Territories as a pilot study in northern community based tourism in Pangnirtung, Baffin Island, in 1981. This thesis is a case study documentation and evaluation of that program. Its focus is to examine the program from the perspective of its participants, which include the residents of Pangnirtung, and planners, tourism representatives, consultants and government officials that have been involved with the program. The thesis identifies what the program's objectives are, what the program's strengths and weaknesses are in achieving its objectives, and how it could have been improved to better meet local community development goals. Documentation methods included an extensive literature search, personal interviews with 101 program participants, and a one-month stay in Pangnirtung. The Pangnirtung Tourism Program was initiated with the following main objectives: a) to set up a test case and demonstration project in northern tourism that could be learned from; b) to strengthen and diversify the economy in Pangnirtung; c) to encourage development that fit in with local lifestyles and social goals; and d) to contribute to capacity building in local community development. During the program's planning phase, community consultation was held, a local Tourism Committee was formed, and a consultants' report outlining a five-year strategy was produced. During implementation, the Tourism Committee has taken the lead in managing the program. Development programs have included: trail construction, historic sites development, a visitors' centre, host programs, cultural programs, outfitter training, local purchase of the hotel, and Committee organization. Since the program started, tourism visitation has increased, the industry is more controlled by locals, and there are more tourism activities in the community. As a test case, the program pioneered a new method of tourism development in the north, and much has been learned. No formal monitoring has been done, however, and this has limited its value as a tourism research and demonstration tool. The program has also created jobs and increased incomes in the community, however, most new jobs and income have been in the public sector. Therefore, it is questionable whether the program has served to decrease or increase dependency on government. The lack of documented data makes it impossible to do a detailed economic analysis. With rapidly increasing visitation and changing public expenditures, the economic impacts of the program should be closely monitored in the future. The program has also fitted in reasonably well with local lifestyles, and its cultural projects have contributed to local social programs. Minor disruptions of lifestyles and culture were documented, however, and these may well increase with increased visitation. The program should be monitored in the future to identify and mitigate potential social problems. The program also contributed, in a limited way, to capacity building in community development. Through involvement in businesses and the Tourism Committee, local people have controlled the direction of the program and have started building skills in business and program management. A lack of business awareness and management skills is still a major problem in the community, however, and increased training and organizational development to build this capacity should be given a priority. In conclusion, the program has been successful in achieving many of its objectives, and provides many lessons for tourism development in the north. By emphasizing local control, involvement and management, tourism has been developed with the participation of local people for the benefit of local people. By pioneering and demonstrating this approach in one Inuit community, the Pangnirtung Tourism Program has contributed significantly to facilitating community based tourism development in the north. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

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M.Com. (Tourism and Hospitality Management) / The significant role that SMEs play in the economic development of both developed and developing countries is acknowledged universally. In the development of policy relating to the tourism sector international organizations and tourism scholarship on collaboration and partnerships exhort governments to enter into partnerships with the private sector. One stakeholder that is often omitted is, however, the group of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Only a limited amount of work has been undertaken outside the developed world and sub-Sahara in particular, on issues relating to the involvement of SMEs in tourism policy. In this investigation, a qualitative explorative study was conducted with the aim of providing interpretative and evaluative knowledge on this phenomena. Based on purposive sampling forty key informants of various backgrounds and from different locations in Namibia participated in the study. The results of this research on Namibia contribute to the limited body of literature and knowledge concerning the participation of SMEs in the formulation of tourism policies. The study provides an analysis of the complexity of issues surrounding SME participation in policy formulation. It gives descriptions of the policy process in order to unravel the interaction between the various policy actors, their attitudes and behaviours. The major findings of the study are that in Namibia SMEs are involved in the policy process only in an ad hoc manner. Not only are they less knowledgeable about the policy process and policy content but also they are ignorant of the rules of engagement. The SMEs and interest groups respond to policy formulation as an end goal. The study recommends that SME incorporation in tourism policy formulation should be based on a number of overarching principles and approaches. It is argued SME involvement should be through consultation and empowerment. In addition, an important aspect of local empowerment is the impartation of skills and knowledge that enable SMEs to participate effectively in decision-making beginning with the local level.

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University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences. / Department of Government and Public Administration

This thesis argues that landscapes are products of language, that the meaning of a landscape depends upon how it is presented and interpreted in the course of human communication. It is also argued that the field of rhetoric—as a body of theory, ideas, and methods for interpreting the persuasive use of language—can assist human geographers in their attempts to interpret landscapes. These positions are put to work in a study of the promotion of tourist landscapes by the British Columbia government. Two time periods are examined: first, presentations of landscape during the 1920s and 1930s, and second the 1970s and 1980s. These periods are similar in that they are periods of transition—periods in which the tourism industry underwent significant change. The first period is associated with the development of mass tourism, and specifically with the emergence of the state as a major player in the tourist industry. The second period concerns the recent development of postmodern (alternative environmental and cultural) tourism. Postmodern tourism is characterized by the rejection of mass tourism and by the quest for real places and experiences. The thesis uses both qualitative and quantitative (computer-assisted content analysis) methods to examine how the state has rhetorically responded to these changes in its presentations of landscape. Changes are found in both periods, but they are gradual and incomplete. It is consequently argued that the state’s character as an author limits its audience and the strategies it may use for presenting tourist landscapes.

This research sets out to examine how media are utilised by the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture through the Lesotho Tourism Development Corporation in collaboration with specific leisure tourists destinations to promote domestic leisure tourism in Lesotho. The research relied on the use of unstructured interviews based on interview schedule in order to elicit comment, opinion and information from respondents. The researcher also used questionnaire to establish the appropriate media that could be used by the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture through the Lesotho Tourism Development Co-operation to promote leisure tourism in the country. Through these interviews and questionniare, problems that surround media promotion of domestic leisure tourism were also identified. These problems include financial constraints and limitations that are set by the Government in choosing the type of media that has to be used by the Lesotho Tourism Development Corporation to promote tourism in the country. The study discovered other weak areas in the Lesotho Tourism Development Corporation’s marketing of domestic tourism. Suitable recommendations have been made as to how such flaws could be addressed in order that it could increase the numbers of domestic leisure tourists. / Thesis (M.B.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2008.