This thesis examines development changes that took place in Glenmore after 1994. To examine such change one needs to have a concise historical understanding of the situation in Glenmore before democracy. The aim of the work is to critique development at a local, rural level, pinpointing the major changes, if any, that came with the incorporation of the former homeland of Ciskei (and thus Glenmore village) with South Africa. These people were forcibly resettled in 1979 for political and economic reasons. Their situation then was one of dire poverty; it is argued here that even with democracy, their history of underdevelopment has continued. The reason for this continued underdevelopment is the structure of the former reserves. The overall political context has changed in South Africa but the most important aspect with regard to the development of the homelands: land, has not. At the central level, the government has churned out a wide variety of development policies, which due to the prevailing political and economic context of the times are fraught with inconsistencies. The example used here to show some of these inconsistencies is the 1997 White Paper on Land Reform. This confusion at the central level with regard to the perceived future of South Africa has managed to adversely affect the rural areas and their development. There very well might be policies in abundance to improve the life-world of the rural poor, but there are inconsistencies between this policy and actual practice. With regard to Glenmore the confusion in the present government’s central development policy is arguably the main reason for the underdevelopment of the village. The inconsistencies in policy such as the 1997 White Paper on Land Reform, have meant that the structure of the reserves has not changed. Vital issues such as land tenure and ownership have not been dealt with. The study thus shows that unless the structure of the homeland system which is predominantly based on issues of land, is changed, genuine social and economic development will not take place in areas like Glenmore.

Ecotourism has often failed to deliver appropriate, tangible benefits to host communities living near protected areas in developing regions of Africa. The Robford Community Conservation Benefit Centre (RCCBC) model was developed as a means to overcome many of the common problems of community-based ecotourism and to enhance the range and flow of benefits to such communities by developing a suite of products and programmes aimed specifically at scientists, volunteer tourists and participatory environmental research tourists. This study tests the aims that the necessary tourism, geographic, social and research conditions are present for the implementation of the RCCBC model in a local community situated close to the Great Fish River Nature Reserve (GFRNR) in South Africa. Situational assessment fieldtrips determined that the GFRNR, its immediate tourism egion and the ten settlements surrounding the nature reserve conformed to RCCBC development guidelines and were suitable for further detailed investigation. One of the settlements, Glenmore Village, conformed most closely to the RCCBC model’s guidelines for selecting a preferred host community. A census survey of all households in Glenmore determined a demographic profile of village residents. A random sample survey of 70 Glenmore households established a social profile of the community’s residents and their attitude to various aspects of the RCCBC model. A spatial analysis of the Glenmore precinct determined that sufficient, suitable land was available for the development of RCCBC products and programmes. The findings of the research indicated that the tourism, geographic, social and research conditions were present at Glenmore, the GFRNR and its surrounding tourism region for the implementation of the RCCBC model and the development of the model’s proposed products and programmes at Glenmore Village. Implementation of the RCCBC model at Glenmore and the GFRNR as a pilot study could introduce a new way of bringing tangible, meaningful benefits to select communities located close to protected areas in existing tourism regions that have failed to benefit either completely or partially from traditional forms of ecotourism development in the past. / Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Environmental Management)

Ecotourism has often failed to deliver appropriate, tangible benefits to host communities living near protected areas in developing regions of Africa. The Robford Community Conservation Benefit Centre (RCCBC) model was developed as a means to overcome many of the common problems of community-based ecotourism and to enhance the range and flow of benefits to such communities by developing a suite of products and programmes aimed specifically at scientists, volunteer tourists and participatory environmental research tourists. This study tests the aims that the necessary tourism, geographic, social and research conditions are present for the implementation of the RCCBC model in a local community situated close to the Great Fish River Nature Reserve (GFRNR) in South Africa. Situational assessment fieldtrips determined that the GFRNR, its immediate tourism egion and the ten settlements surrounding the nature reserve conformed to RCCBC development guidelines and were suitable for further detailed investigation. One of the settlements, Glenmore Village, conformed most closely to the RCCBC model’s guidelines for selecting a preferred host community. A census survey of all households in Glenmore determined a demographic profile of village residents. A random sample survey of 70 Glenmore households established a social profile of the community’s residents and their attitude to various aspects of the RCCBC model. A spatial analysis of the Glenmore precinct determined that sufficient, suitable land was available for the development of RCCBC products and programmes. The findings of the research indicated that the tourism, geographic, social and research conditions were present at Glenmore, the GFRNR and its surrounding tourism region for the implementation of the RCCBC model and the development of the model’s proposed products and programmes at Glenmore Village. Implementation of the RCCBC model at Glenmore and the GFRNR as a pilot study could introduce a new way of bringing tangible, meaningful benefits to select communities located close to protected areas in existing tourism regions that have failed to benefit either completely or partially from traditional forms of ecotourism development in the past. / Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Environmental Management)