CHAPTER ONE

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

1.1. INTRODUCTION

1.1.1. Importance and global trend in tourism

World travel and tourism council (1997) projects that the economics of

the 21st century will be dominated by three industries:

telecommunication, information technology and tourism. The tourism

has grown by over 500% in the last 26 years and it is estimated that by

the year 2007, tourist will spend US $886 billion in foreign countries on

tourism related activities. It has been estimated that by the year 2007,

more than 100 million people worldwide will be employed in this sector.

Hence tourism is valued highly by many countries and holds a very

prominent position in development strategies. It is actively promoted,

and industry bodies are courted by government due to its potential to

significantly bolster foreign exchange and domestic employment

increases in leisure time, the growth in real income mobility,

technological improvements in communications and international

1
transportation, and demography changes in the west all have led to the

strong global demand for the tourism. According to a study, a 10%

increase in real income in developed countries lead to consumers

increasing their foreign travel by expenditure by 13 to 20% (arts in

Goldfarb, 1989). This growth has significant implication for developing

countries. Revenues received from tourism receipt now account for more

than 10% of the value in 47developing countries and more than 50% of

the comparable amount received from export revenues in 17 countries.

1.1.2. The Idea of Ecotourism

The notion of ecotourism is broad. For some it is a subset of nature-

based tourism activities, for others it is a niche market, a specific type of

special interest tourism. In a relatively short period of time, it has caught

the imaginations of many local communities, government and

interventional environmental organizations. Estimates of ecotourism

growth are extremely variable at the present time, but range from

anywhere between 10% and 30% (kallen 1990; Vickland, 1980 ). The

tourism industry has wholly embraced ecotourism, even to the extent of

2
the term ecotourism becoming the buzz word of the late 1990s.

fundamentally ecotourism involves traveling to relatively undisturbed or

protected natural areas, fostering, understanding, appreciation and

conversion of the flora, fauna geology and ecosystem of an area. The

fauna, flora, geology and ecosystem of an area highlight the nature-

based aspect of ecotourism. But ecotourism is not defined by this

relationship alone. Biological and physical features are central to

ecotourism and the conservation of natural areas and sustainable

resource management is therefore essential for the planning,

development and management of ecotourism. Also, activity of

ecotourism must positively contribute to conservation in the destination

area or lost community. Ecotourism is about attracting visitor for the

‘right’ reason and not simply the promotion of tourism for the sake of

the ‘tourist dollar’ at the expense of community’s natural and cultural

attributes. Ecotourism in its purest form is an industry which claims to

make a low impact on the environment and local culture, while helping

to generate money, jobs and helping to conserve the environment of

wildlife and vegetation. It provides a way to help educate the community

3
to protect and conserve the environment for both residents and tourist.

Therefore residents of host communities for various ecotourism sites

should be aware of and have a positive attitude towards ecotourism.

Ecotourism is a subset of tourism.

The United Nations Statistical Commission (1993) adopted the

definition given by the world Tourism. The officially accepted definition

is: “tourism comprises the activities of people traveling to staying place

outside their usual environments for more than one consecutive day for

leisure, business and other purpose.”

Ecotourism falls within the general ambiance of the very broad tourism

industry by its nature, principles, practices and even definition. There is

a thin line between tourism and ecotourism. While tourism basically

involves travel for leisure, ecotourism combines leisure with

conservation tourism being a human activity requires the closest

harmony between the attitude and behavior of tourists and the local

people (Inskemp 1991). Tourism growth hinges on a number of delicate

parameters which are mostly qualitative in nature, the social professional

structures of the local population, their level of education and

4
knowledge, standard of living, opinions and attitudes regarding the

tourist phenomenon and its cultural and institutional effects.

1.1.3. Attitudes and Perception to Ecotourism

The attitude of the local people towards ecotourism is an important

factor to consider before carrying out such developments. Inskeep

(1991) also contended that although not quantifiable, very real attraction

for many tourists can be the friendly, hospitable character of the local

residents and more generally, their tolerance and acceptance of tourist

visiting their region. The honesty and reliability of the residents in their

dealings with tourists are also important factors to consider in

determining the potential attractiveness of an area. Gunn (1994) notes

that an areas tourism attraction potential includes nearby rural areas as

well as the cities, within a destination zone. It is likely that the majority

of cultural resources will be found within communities, whereas most

natural resources are located in the surrounding areas. It is therefore

essential that the developers of tourism communicate with the local

communities of tourism is to develop.

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Half of the people who engage in tourist activities do so in the third

world countries.

Nigeria is one of the world’s most prominent third world Country with

its administrative capital in Abuja, one of the fastest growing cities with

immerse ecotourism potentials although faced with challenges of

developing the sector .

1.2. STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM

The master plan of Abuja, prepared in 1979, expects the city to be

developed as a garden city, including the conservation of its green areas

and biodiversity. The importance of Abuja as a garden city stems from

the conception of Abuja as both the jewel of the nation and the world,

and thus has made ample provisions for the city’s Greens having 33 %

of the total landuse budget of the city with the aim of developing Abuja

as a garden city.In last 20 years, the city has undertaken deliberate

efforts to restore its lost green areas through the restoration of the Abuja

master plan.

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 But while the green areas and biodiversity heritage of the city have

potential for the development of ecotourism in Abuja, as revealed

through preliminary observations, there tends to be the problem of poor

perception of ecotourism and the potential for its development by the

people. There is thus the need investigate further the poor perception

and attitude of the people towards the development of ecotourism sites

in Abuja.

1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study is to the poor perception of Abuja’s residents

regarding the development of ecotourism. The objectives of this research

study are to:

1. Identify the various ecological sites and their suitability for ecotourism
in the study.

area
2. Examine people’spoor perception and attitudes towards ecotourism.

3. To access the level of awareness and understanding of residents/tourists

about the ecotourism and environmental conservation.
1.4 SCOPE OF STUDY

7
The scope of this study is limited to phases I and II of the Abuja FCC.

This is not only because they are the two most developed ecotourism

sites in the territory are located. Figure 1.1 gives the main districts found

within the two phases.

1.5 JUSTIFICATION OF RESEARCH

Ecotourism Is a growing niche market within the larger travel industry,

with the potential of being an important sustainable development tool.

With global annual sales running into billions of dollars, ecotourism is a

real industry that seeks to take advantage of market trends. Nigeria

whose capital Abuja is being used as a case study for this research, is a

country in dire need of an alternative source of foreign exchange earning

aside the present crude oil. Tourism is a principle “export” (foreign

exchange earner) for 83% of developing countries, and the learning

export for 1/3 of poorest countries.

For the world’s poorest countries, tourism is the second most important

source of foreign exchange, after oil. Over last decade, tourism has been

“the only large sector of international trade in services where poor

8
countries have consistently posted a surplus. International tourism in

developing countries is increasing by 9.5% a year compared to 4.6%

worldwide.

Tourism “appears to be one of the few economic sectors able to guide a

number of developing countries to higher levels of prosperity and for

some to leave behind their least-developed country status.

Beginning in 1990s, ecotourism has been growing 20% - 34% per year.

In 2004, ecotourism/nature tourism was growing globally 3 times faster

than the tourism industry as a whole. Nature tourism is growing at 10% -

12% per annum in the national market. Sun-and-sand resort tourism has

now “matured as a market” and its growth is projected to remain flat. In

the contrast, “experiential” tourism-which encompasses ecotourism,

nature, heritage, cultural, and soft adventure tourism, as well as sub-

sectors such as rural and community tourism -is among the sector

expected to grow most quickly over the next two decades. United

Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Conservation

International have indicated that most of tourism’s expansion is

9
occurring in and around the world’s remaining natural areas. xxi o

Sustainable tourism could grow to 25% of the world’s travel market

within six years, taking the value of the sector to £250 billion (US$473.6

billion) a year. Analysis Predict a growth in eco-resorts and hotels, and a

boom in nature tourism – a sector already growing at 20% a year -and

suggest early converts to sustainable tourism will make market gains.

Ecotourism, if properly explored adhering to its principles, practice and

indeed the entire broad segment of the tourism industry, it can provide a

very viable alternative source of revenue. Critical to the success of

ecotourism as an economic activity anywhere in the world is attitude and

perceptions of both tourist and residents. It is therefore very necessary to

determine whether the attitude of tourists and residents are either

positive or negative when plans for successful tourism are being drawn

up.

This research work seeks to do that for the federal Capital Territory.

Previous research works available have been on the broad tourism

industry . Ecotourism which has been identified as the most sustainable

10
kind of tourism that can conserve the environment is still scantly

researched into in Nigeria. This research seeks to cover that gap.

CHAPTER TWO

2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 CONCEPTUTAL ISSUES

Today various definition of ecotourism exists in the literature. Each

definition tends to reflect the professional and ideological learning the

term. Hector Ceballos-Lascurian in his preliminary definition of

ecotourism, defined it thus “Ecotourism is that tourism that involves

traveling to relatively undisturbed natural areas with the specific object

of studying admiring and enjoying the scenery and it’s wild plants and

animals as well as any existing cultural aspect” (both post and present)

found in these areas. Ecotourism implies a scientific esthetic or

philosophical approach, although the ‘ecotourism’ is not required to be a

professional scientist, artists or philosopher. The main point is that the

person who practices ecotourism has the opportunity of immersing him

or herself in nature in a way that most people cannot enjoy in their

11
routine, urban existences. This person will eventually acquire a

consciousness and knowledge of the natural environment, together with

its cultural aspects, that will convert him into somebody keenly involved

in conservation issues.

In the Awake Magazine publication of August, 22 nd 2005, Ecotourism

was defined as “purposeful travel to natural areas to understand the

culture and natural history of the environment taking care not to alter the

integrity of the ecosystem that make the conversion of natural resources

benefit to local people.” World conversion union and nature

conservancy in 1996 jointly adopted the following definition of

ecotourism “environmentally responsible travel to natural areas in order

to enjoy appreciate nature and accompanying cultural features both past

and present” that promote conservation, have a low visitor impact and

provide for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local

peoples’. For the purpose of this research work, I would adopt the

definition given by Stephen Wearing and john Neil (1999). Ecotourism

according to them “can be described as a low key, minimal impact,

12
interpretative tourism where conversation, understanding and

appreciation of the environment is sought,”

Ecotourism is of special interest to the United Nations Programme on

the Environment (UNEP). This is basically because of ecotourism

relationship with conservation, sustainability and biology diversity. As a

development tool ecotourism can advance the basics goals of the

convention on biological diversity, as follows;

a. Conserve biological (and cultural) diversity, by strengthening

protected area management systems (public or private) and

increasing the value of sound ecosystems.

b. Promote the sustainable use of biodiversity, by generating income,

jobs and business opportunities in ecotourism and related business

networks,

c. Share the benefits of ecotourism developments equitable with local

committees and indigenous people, by obtaining their information

consent and full participation in planning and management of

ecotourism business.

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In the field well planned and managed ecotourism has proven to be one

of the most effective tools for long-term conservation of biodiversity

when the right circumstances (such as market feasibility, management

capacity at local level, and clear and monitored links between

ecotourism development and conservation) are present.

Ecotourism, also known as ecological tourism, is a form of tourism that

appeals to ecologically and socially conscious individuals. Generally

speaking, ecotourism focuses on volunteering, personal growth, and

learning new ways to live on the planet. It typically involves travel to

destinations where flora, fauna, and cultural heritage are the primary

attractions.

Responsible ecotourism includes programs that minimize the negative

aspects of conventional tourism on the environment and enhance the

cultural integrity of local people. Therefore, in addition to evaluating

environmental and cultural factors, an integral part of ecotourism is the

promotion of recycling, energy efficiency, water conservation, and

creation of economic opportunities for the local communities.

14
There is no university accepted definition of ecotourism. Evans-

pritchard and Salazar [1992, cited in Mowforth and Munt (1998, p.104]

note that “it is still not possible to be exact about whether the term

‘ecotourism’ can be defined as a type of tourism where the environment,

local community and visitor all benefit. In practice, the term

‘ecotourism’ is often used by tour operators as a marketing tool to

promote any form of tourism that is related to nature. As Wight [1994,

p.39] notes;

“there seems to be two prevailing views of ecotourism: one envisages

that public interest in the environment may be used to market a product;

the other sees that this same interest may be used to conserve the

resources upon which this product is based. These views need not be

mutually exclusive”.

Various conference have been held on ecotourism and responsible

tourism to promote the latter view cited above. At the 1995 world

conference on sustainable tourism held in Lanzarote, it was agreed that:

15
“ Tourism is sustainable when it’s development and operation include

participation of local population, protection of the total environment, fair

economic return for the industry and it’s host community, as well as a

mutual respect for and gratification of all involved parties” [Jafari, 1996,

p.959].

From such conferences and literature on ecotourism have emerged

numerous principles to such tourism should adhere if it can be defined as

ecotourism. These principles and guidelines are not merely theories

espoused by “armchair geographers” as you what a “perfect” form of

tourism would look like but are important if the tourism activities are to

be viable in the long term. The principles of such ideal ecotourism are

outlined below. These principles outline our definition of ecotourism.

2.2 THE NATURE OF ECOTOURISM

The natural environment is central to ecotourism, which has a focus on

biological and physical features. The conservation of natural areas and

sustainable resource management is therefore essential to the planning,

development and management of ecotourism. Valentine (1991), draws

16
attention to the two-way interaction between ecotourism and the

environment upon which it depends, by suggesting that one

characteristics of ecotourism is that, it is both contributory to

conservation as well as enjoyment of nature. That is ecotourism involves

a focus on nature as the primary motivation for travel, to further

knowledge and awareness of nature. However, it also involves the

notion that the activity of ecotourism must positively contribute to

conservation in the destination area or community. The principal

concerns of ecotourism include environmental degradation, impact on

local communities, and the need for high quality tourism management

for achievable sustainability.

Ecotourism is a specialist area of tourism, it involves travel to natural

areas or areas where human presence is minimal, with the ecotourism

involved in the ecotourism experience expressing an explicit motivation

to satisfy the need for environmental, social and /or cultural education

and awareness through visiting and experiencing the natural area . All

forms of travel to natural areas are not necessarily ecotourism. In

17
ecotourism, the prime motivation is the observation and appreciation of

natural features and related cultural features. Figure 2.1 places

ecotourism within the wider tourism sector.

2.3 FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF ECOTOURISM

Ecotourism has some fundamental elements. Stephen Wearing and John

Neil (1999) identified four fundamental elements of ecotourism. These

are described below.

2.3.1 THE NOTION OF MOVEMENT OR TRAVEL FROM ONE

LOCATION TO ANOTHER.

The travel should be restricted to relatively undisturbed or protected

natural areas as ecotourism focus is fundamentally on experiencing

natural areas. Protected or undisturbed natural areas offer the heat

guarantee for encountering sustained natural features and attractions

(Ceballos Lascurain 1990).

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2.3.2 ECOTOURISM IS NATURE BASED

Activities such as business travel, travel to cities, conventional beach

holidays and sporting holidays and sporting holidays cannot be

considered as ecotourism as their focus is not primarily on an experience

based on the natural environment of the

FIGURE 2.1: ECOTOURISM WITHIN WIDER TOURISM

SECTOR

Ecotourism is travel often to developing countries to relatively

undisturbed natural areas for study, enjoyment or volunteer assistance

that concerns itself with the flora, fauna, geology and ecosystems of an
19
area as well as the people (caretakers) who live nearby, their needs their

culture and relationship to the land ( Swanson, 1992). However, this

does not mean that ecotourism is exclusively limited to relatively

undisturbed natural areas. Ecotourism can rejuvenate nature as well.

Rehabilitating degraded areas as a result of human activity can be

classified as ecotourism as in this case, there is a definite contribution to

the environment and a direct benefit to the local community, there is an

ethnical impetus for tourisms in traveling to these areas in volunteering

their service to the environment.

2.3.4 Ecotourism is conservation led.

As a segment of the tourism industry ecotourism has emerged as a result

of increasing global concern for disappearing cultures and ecosystems

(Kutay, 1990) and as a repudiation of inappropriate tourism

development which can degrade a protected area and have unanticipated

economic, social or environmental effects on the surrounding lands

(Ceballos-Lascurain, 1990). Ecotourism therefore aims to take small

groups of people to natural or protected areas with a minimum impact on

20
the physical, social and cultural environments. Further to the notion of

conservation is the idea that ecotourism will contribute to a sustainable

future, of the destination it occurs in, in the form of economic returns or

volunteer assistance. In the this way, ‘ecotourism has the potential to

foster conservation of natural resources by increasing the awareness by

people in the importance of the natural resources’ (Swanson, 1992) and

for this reason, the notion of conservation must be included in a

definition of ecotourism. Ecotourists are, as a general rule, more

concerned with environmental impacts than mass tourists and as such

ecotourism promotes a greater understanding and respect of cultures,

heritage and the natural environment and people usually protect what

they respect (Richardson, 1991). In essence, ecotourism experiences are

sustainable in respect both to the environment and local populations,

their culture, needs and desires.

2.3.3 Ecotourism Has An Educative Role

The ecotourist generally express a strong desire to learn about nature on

their trips (Eaglesetal, 1992) Ecotourism’s dependency on nature, as

21
opposed to other forms of tourism where nature is incidental to the

experience, includes the touristic motivation of satisfying an educational

need which is derived from interactions with the natural environment.

Ecotourism operators may therefore be expected to provide an

appropriate level of environmental and cultural interpretation, usually

through the employment of appropriately qualified guides and the

provision of environmental information both prior to and during the trip.

This educative roles refers not only to the tourists themselves but also to

industry operators and local communities. The need to disseminate

information to tourists on appropriate behavior in fragile social and

ecologic settings is increasingly being recognized as the responsibility of

industry operators’ (Blaugy and Elper-wood 1992). By their active

participation, ecotourists are educated to appreciate the importance of

natural and cultural conservation Ecotourism attracts people who wish to

interact with the environment and, in varying degrees, develop their

knowledge, awareness and appreciation of it. Ecotourism can also

provide local people the opportunity to learn about and use the area and

attraction that tourists come to visit (Wallace, 1992) for the host
22
community ecotourism may also stimulate renewed appreciation of the

unique valve of their own cultural traditions’ as a result of the interest

shown by tourists (Kutay, 1990).

2.4 PRINCIPLES OF ECOTOURISM

Originally ecotourism was just an idea, not a discipline. Because of this

many business and government promoted it without an understanding of

it’s most basic principles. Establishing internationally and nationally

accepted principles guidelines and certification approaches proceeded

throughout the 1990s but at a modest pace, because the process involves

stakeholders from many regions, disciplines and backgrounds.

The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) had tracked the results of

stakeholder meetings since 1991 to develop set of principles, which are

being embraced by a growing constituency of NGOs, private sector

businesses, governments, academic and local communities. These

principles include:

 Minimize the negative impacts on nature and culture that can

damage a destination.

23
 Educate the travel on the importance of conversion.

 Stress the importance of responsible business, which works

cooperatively with local authorities and people to meet local needs

and deliver conservation benefits.

 Direct revenue to the conservation and management of natural and

protected areas.

 Emphasis the need for regional tourism zoning and for visitor

management plans designed for either regions or natural areas that

are slated to become eco-destinations.

 Emphasis use of environment and social baseline studies, as well

as long-term monitoring programmes, to access and minimize

impacts.

 Strive to maximize economic benefits for the host country, local

business and committees, particularly peoples bring and adjacent

to natural and protected areas.

 Seek to ensure that tourism development does not exceed the social

and environmental limits of acceptable change as determined by

researcher in co-operation with local residents.

24
  Rely on infrastructure that has been developed in harmony with the

environment, minimizing use of fossil feels, conserving local

plants and wildlife, and bleeding with the natural and cultural

environment.

 Build environmental and cultural awareness and respect

 Provide positive experience for both visitors and hosts

 Provide direct financial benefits for conservation

 Provide financial benefits and empowerment for local people

 Raise sensitivity to host countries' political, environmental, and

social climate

Once principles have been agreed upon specific guidelines can be

developed that help define the market best possible performance. These

guidelines can the offer practical approaches to achieving sustainable

development results, as gleaned from survey research on best practices

and stakeholders meetings among researchers, the private sectors, NGOs

and local communities international review finalizes the guidelines

25
process, helping to assure that a wide variety of viewpoints are

incorporated.

Ideally, ecotourism should satisfy several criteria, such as:

 Conservation of biological diversity and cultural diversity through

ecosystem protection

 Promotion of sustainable use of biodiversity, by providing jobs to

local populations

 Sharing of social-economic benefits with local communities and

indigenous people by having their informed consent and

participation in the management of ecotourism enterprises

 Tourism to unspoiled natural resources, with minimal impact on

the environment being a primary concern.

 Minimization of tourism's own environmental impact

 Affordability and lack of waste in the form of luxury

 Local culture, flora and fauna being the main attractions

For many countries, ecotourism is not simply a marginal activity to

finance protection of the environment but is majorly industry of the

26
national economy. For example, in Costa rica, Ecuador, Nepal, Kenya,

Madagascar, and Antarctica, ecotourism represents a significant portion

of the gross domestic product and economic activity.

The concept of ecotourism is widely misunderstood, in preactice is often

used as a marketing tool to promote tourism which is related to nature.

This is an especially frequent malpractice in the realm of jungle tourism.

Critics claim that these greenwashing practice carried out in the name of

ecotourism often consist of placing a hotel in a splendid landscape, to

the detriment of the ecosystem. According to them, ecotourism must

above all sensitize people to the beauty and the fragility of nature. They

condemn some operators as greenwashing their operations: using the

labels of "green" and eco-friendly", while behaving in environmentally

irresponsible ways.

Although academics disagree about who can be classified as an

ecotourist and there is precious little statistical data, some estimate that

more than five million ecotourists the majority of the ecotourist

27
population - come from the united states, with others from Western

Europe, Canada, and Australia.

Currently there are various moves to create national and international

ecotourism, accreditation programs, although the process is also

controversial. National ecotourism certification programs have been put

in place in countries such as Costa Rica, Australia, Kenya and Sweden.

2.5 ECOTOURISM AND THE ENVIRONMENT

The environment is one of the primary concerns of ecotourism, which

often involves travel to relatively undisturbed areas. As the tourism

product is often dependent upon nature, negative impacts upon that

resource should be minimized. As cater [1994] notes, even the most

conscientious tourist will have some degree of impact on the

environment and so ecotourism should therefore attempt to minimize

that impact. Many studies of tourism attempt to identify an

environmental carrying capacity but a major difficulty of this technique

is that it "implies the existence of fixed and determinable limits to

development and that if one stays below those threshold levels no

28
changes or deterioration will occur" [Murphy, 1994, p. 282; see also

Gunn, 1994, Farrell & Runyan, p.31].

2.6 ECOTOURISM THE LOCAL POPULATION AND

ECONOMIC BENEFITS

A definition of ecotourism must also take into account the local

population- ecotourism should minimize negative impacts on the host

community because otherwise the local population may come to dislike

the presence of tourism, and this could undermine its long-term

prospects. Tourism is likely to have the greatest socio-cultural impacts

on small, isolated communities [pearce, 1994] which may themselves be

one of the tourist attractions. As a result, any cultural changes in the

community's way of life may reduce the tourism product's overall

marketability and therefore future prospects. At the same time,

ecotourism should provide direct economic benefits for the local

community is it is to receive their continued support-benefits that should

compliment rather than overwhelm traditional practices and sources of

income (Wallace & Pierce, 1996). However such economic benefits and

29
material wealth obtained by the local community may themselves lead to

cultural changes in their way of life. The literature on ecotourism asserts

that economic benefits should be accrued by the host community whilst

at the same time preserving the environment and cultural way of that

community.

Little of the literature acknowledges the fact that the two will often be

mutually exclusive. An article by wall [1997], notes that "ecotourism is

an agent of change" [p.490]. he also notes the widespread misuse of the

term "sustainable tourism", asserting that it should be considered as

"tourism which is in a form which can maintain its viability in an area

for an indefinite period of time" [Butter, 1993,cited in wall, 1997,

p.486]. considering that "ecotourism is not automatically sustainable"

[Wall, 1997, p.490], it may have to be viewed as part of a longer term

strategy of sustainable development in which tourism is later phased out

[Prosser, 1994]. Such an argument questions the underlying principle of

ecotourism- that it is a sustainable form of tourism.

30
It is widely agreed that the host population should receive economic

benefits from ecotourism. Without economic benefits, the host

community will have little reason to view the intrusion of tourists

positively and will have little incentive to protect the environment upon

which tourism depends. Ecotourism is often found in designated

protected areas or national parks which may have been imposed upon

the indigenous population and if they can see no benefit from its

existence, they may have little incentive to adhere to the environmental

regulations of the "common pool" resource [Hardin, 1968; Healy,1994;

see also Bird, 1997]. Ecotourism is regarded by some critics as a form of

neo-colonialism, the question of who actually benefits from the

designation of protected areas is addressed by Mowforth and Munt

[1998, p.177]:

" there is the question of who actually gain from the construction of

parks. It rarely seems to be the local people and, indeed, part of the

answer seems to be found in the removal of local rights and a loss or

denial of ownership. Instead it is the rich consumer in the industrialised

31
North with leisure and wealth to be a tourist in the Third World who

gains from the designation of national parks"

2.7 ECOTOURISM AND LOCAL PARTICIPATION

Great importance is attached to the need for local participation in

ecotourism. According to Wallace and Pierce [1996], ecotourism is a

type of tourism that "maximizes the early and long-term participation of

local people in the decision making process that determines the kind and

amount of tourism that should occur" [p.850]. there are important

reasons for local involvement other than a moral obligation to

incorporate the people tourism will affect. The degree of control the

local population has over tourism in their locality is generally perceived

as being a significant element of sustainability [Mowforth & Munt,

1998]. As was noted earlier, ecotourism is required to provide direct

economic benefits to the local community and minimize negative

environmental and socio-cultural impacts. The most likely way these

objectives can be achieved is if the local community is actively

32
participating in the empowered through ecotourism. Cater [1994, p.84]

points out that:

"in terms of conserving the natural and socio-cultural resource base, the

time perspective of the local population is longer than that of outside

entrepreneurs concerned with early profits. They are also more likely to

ensure that traditions and lifestyles will be respected. Their co-operation

is also a vital factor in reducing infringements of conservation

regulations such as poaching and indiscriminate treefelling".

Drake [1991, p.134] notes further advantages of involving the local

community in ecotourism projects:

"local participation functions as an early

warning system, helping to avoid or plan for
decisions that might otherwise cause conflict
with the local population. Also, including a
participation program in the design stage of a
project provides the opportunity for the
community to become educated about the
purpose and benefits of the project, thereby
increasing support for the effort."
Tourism that includes indigenous communities as part of the tourist

attraction is often accuse of being a process of zooification which leads

33
to a position of powerlessness for the local people. The key to avoiding

such situation is a local control of and participation in the tourism

activity [Mowforth & Munt,1998].

The degree of power wielded by the local community in relation to

tourism activities is crucial to its long-term prospects and sustainability.

Their empowerment might go some way to counter the claim that

tourism, and ecotourism in particular, is a form of neo-colonialism.

However, as Mowforth &Munt [1998, p.240] note, the push for local

participation comes from a position of power, the first world".

2.8 ECOTOURISM AND EDUCATION

The final principle to which ecotourism should adhere is that of

education. Wight [1994, p.40] asserts that ecotourism "should involve

education among all parties-local communities, government, non-

governmental organizations, industry and tourists (before, during and

after the trip)". Guides should therefore have been taught conservation

issues and the tourists should be told about local conservation efforts and

why they are deemed important. Tourists should be made aware of the
34
damaging potential of their stay and should be properly informed on

"ecotourism etiquette" and how to behave to reduce any negative

impacts they might have [Cater, 1994, p,81].

2.9 HISTORY OF ECOTOURISM

Ecotourism, responsible tourism, jungle and sustainable development

have become prevalent concepts since the late 1980s, and the ecotourism

has experienced arguably the fastest growth of all sub-sectors in the

tourism industry. The popularity represents a growth of all sub-sectors in

the tourism industry. The popularity represents a change in tourist

perceptions, increased environmental awareness, and a desire to explore

natural environments. Such changes have become as much a statement

affirming one's social identity, educational sophistication, and disposable

income as it has about preserving the Amazon rainforest or the caribbean

reef for posterity.

With its great potential for environmental protection, the

United Nations Celebrated the "international year of

Ecotourism" in 2002.

35
Ecotourism has its history deeply rooted in the

conservation movement. It began as an untested idea

that many hoped could contribute to the conservation of

natural resources worldwide. Research undertaken is

Kenya in the 1970s (Thresher 1981) demonstrated that

the economic benefits of wildlife tourism far surpassed

hunting-an activity that was banned in Kenya in 1977. In

the early 1980s rainforests and coral reefs became the

subject of both innumerable studies by biologists

interested in biological diversity of a plethora of nature

film documentaries. This interest helped launch a wide

variety of local small business specializing in guiding

scientists and filmmakers into remote zone. As these

small business quickly began to prosper in countries such

as Costa Rica and Ecuador, a more formal industry soon

evolved to meet the needs of small tourism groups that

were primarily composed of bird watchers and committed

36
naturalists. In many areas of the world pioneer

entrepreneurs created special field visits and studies for

adult travelers, students and volunteers. International

nature-based business began to thrive in the 1980's with

the growing interest in outdoor travel and the

environment, spurred by excellent new outdoor

equipment for camping and linking, and event such as

Earth Day. These companies began to realize that they

could take the initiative to conserve the environment by

sponsoring local conservation groups in the destination

they visited or by raising funds local causes. They soon

learned that training and bringing local people to run

their businesses was the best way to manage their

operations, and an excellent way of creating, significant

benefits for local people. Tour operators selling trips to

the Galapagos Islands, Costa Rica, Kenya and Nepal were

some of the early players in this movement. Some of

37
these companies infact argue that, they had already been

using ecotourism principles for some 20 to 30 years. The

word 'Ecotourism was coined early July 1983 by a

Mexican Architect and environmentalist, HECTOR

CEBALLOS-LASCURIAN. He is today referred to as the

father of Ecotourism.

The first appearance of the word in the written form was

in the March - April 1984 edition of 'America Bird's as an

advertisement for a tourist operation run by Ceballos -

Lescurian'

Ecotourism is a neologism and portmanteau word from

'eco' and 'tourism'. The prefix 'Eco' is derived from the

word 'Ecology' which itself is derived from the Greek word

'Oikos' meaning habitat or house. The environment that

we humans inhabit is at its most fundamental, our home,

our dwelling, and our life support. Despite the relative

newness of term, ecotourism's origins are deeply rooted

38
in a form of philosophy and experience, and its

philosophical heritage is embraced by conservationists

and environmentalist alike. The ;environmental

movement was born from the nature conservation

movement which recognized that nature is essential to

human well-being. In recent years this conviction has

been strengthened by the scientific understanding that

biodiversity is essential to not only well-being, but to

human survival may have also articulated the need for

nature to be conserved regardless of any utility or value

to human but because nature has a right to exist and

conversely the right to determine the fate of all other

species (Nash, 1989). Etymologically, the word 'tourist' is

derived from the Latin word 'tornare' and the Greek

'tornos' meaning a lathe or circle-the movement around a

central point or axis. This meaning changed in modern

English to represent 'one's turn'. The suffix-'ism', is

39
defined as an action or process, typical behavior or

quality, while the suffix- 'ist' denote one that performs a

given action. When the word tour and the suffixes-ism

and -ist are combined, they suggest the action of

movement around a circle presenting a starting point

which ultimately returns by to its beginning . therefore

like a circle, the tour represents a journey that is a

roundtrip, i.e the act of leaving and then returning to the

original starting point, and therefore, one who takes such

a journey can be called a tourist (William F. Theobald ).

There are some disagreement as to when the word tourist

first appeared in print smith(1989) suggests that Samuel

Pegge reported the use of 'tourist' as a new word for

traveler. England's sporting magazine introduced the

word 'tourism' on 1911. Feifer (1985) proposed that the

word tourist was coined by stendhal in the early

nineteenth century (1838). Mieczkowski (1990) states

40
that 'the first definition of tourists appears in the

dictionary universal du Xix Siecle in 1876, defining

tourists as persons who travel out of curiosity and

idleness 'Leiper (1979) relates that the word tourism

appears to have first been used in England to describe

young male British aristocrat who were being educated

for careers in politics, government and diplomatic service

in order to round out their studies they embarked upon a

customary three year grand tour of the European

continent, returning home only after the cultural

education was indeed completed. Jafari (1977) proposed

a conceptual definition for tourism. He states that '

tourism is the study of man away from his usual habitat

of the industry which responds to his needs, and of the

impacts that both he and the industry have on the lost

socio-cultural economic, and physical environments'.

2.10 CRITICISMS OF ECOTOURISM

41
2.10.1 Definitional Problems and greenwashing

To approach an understanding of the problem, a clear

definition must delineate what is, and is not, ecotourism.

Ideally, ecotourism satisfies several general criteria,

including the conservation of biological diversity and

cultural diversity through ecosystem protection,

promotion of sustainable use of biodiversity, share of

socio-economic benefits with local communities through

informed consent and participation, increase in

environmental and cultural knowledge, affordability and

reduced waste, and minimization of its own

environmental impact. In such ways. It contributes to the

long term benefits to both the environment and local

communities.

However, in the continuum of tourism activities that

stretch from conventional tourism to ecotourism proper,

there has been a lot of contention to the limit at which

42
biodiversity preservation, local socio-economic benefits,

and environmental impact can be considered

"ecotourism". For this reason, the environmentalists,

special interest groups, and governments define

ecotourism differently. Environmental organizations

having generally insisted that ecotourism is nature-

based, sustainably managed conservation supporting,

and environmentally educated. The tourist industry and

governments, however, focus more on the product

aspect, treating ecotourism as equivalent to any sort of

tourism based in nature. As a further complication, many

terms are used under the rubric of ecotourism.

Nature tourism, low impact tourism, green tourism, bio-

tourism, ecologically responsible tourism, and others

have been used in literature and marketing, although

they are not necessary synonymous with ecotourism.

43
The problems associated with defining ecotourism have

led to confusion among tourists and academics alike .

definitional problems are also subject of considerable

public controversy and concern because of greenwashing,

a trend towards the commercialization of tourism

schemes disguised as sustainable, nature based and

environmentally friendly ecotourism. According to

McLaren (1998), these schemes are environmentally

destructive, economically exploitative, and culturally

insensitive at its worst. They are also morally

disconcerting because they mislead tourists and

manipulate their concerns for the environment. Despite

objections, greenwashing continues to grow unabated.

The nature's sacred Paradise, a theme park in Quintana

Roo, Mexico, is responsible for displacing local Mayan

communities and illegally keeping endangered species in

captivity to attract visitors. The development and success

44
of such large scale, energy intensive and ecologically

unsustainable scheme are a testament to the tremendous

profits associated with being labeled as ecotourism.

2.10.2 NEGATIVE IMPACT OF TOURISM

Ecotourism has been one of the fastest growing sectors of

the tourism industry growing annual 10-15% worldwide

(Miller, 2007). One definition of ecotourism is " the

practice of low-impact, educational, ecologically and

culturally sensitive travel that benefits local communities

and host countries" (honey, 1999). Many of the

ecotourism projects are not meeting this standards. Even

if some of the guidelines are being executed, the local

communities are still facing other negative impacts.

South Africa is one of the countries that are reaping

significant economic benefits from ecotourism, but

negative effects - including physical displacement of

persons, gross violation of fundamental rights, and

45
environmental hazards- far outweigh the middle-term

economic benefits (miller, 2007). A tremendous amount

of money is being spent and human resources continue

to be used for ecotourism despite the lack of success

stories, and even more money to put into public relation

campaigns to dilute the effects of the criticism.

Ecotourism channels resources away from other projects

that could contribute more sustainable and realistic

solutions to pressing, social and environmental problems.

"the money tourism can generate often ties parks and

managements to eco-tourism" (Walpole et al. 2001). But

there is a tension in this relationship because eco-tourism

often causes conflicts and changes in land-use rights fails

to deliver promises of community-level benefits, damages

environments, and has plenty of other social impacts.

Indeed many argue repeatedly that ecotourism is neither

ecologically nor socially beneficial, yet it persists as a

46
strategy for conservation and development (West, 2006).

While several studies are being done on ways to improve

the ecotourism structure, these examples provide

reasons that it should just stop all together

The ecotourism system exercise tremendous financial

and political influence. The evidence above shows the

very least a strong case exists for restraining such

activities. Funding could be used for field studies aimed

at finding alternative solution to tourism and the diverse

problem Africa faces in result of urbanization,

industrialization, and over exploitation of agriculture

(kamuaro, 2007). At the local level ecotourism has

become a source of conflict over control of land,

resources and tourism profits. There are many problems

with the idea of ecotourism. Environmentally, the effects

on the local people, and conflicts over profits distribution

are only a few of the negative effects of ecotourism. In a

47
perfect world more efforts would be made towards tourist

of the environmental and social effects of their travels.

Very few regulations of laws stands in place as

boundaries for the investors in ecosystem. This should be

implemented to prohibit the promotion of unsustainable

ecotourism projects and materials which project false

images of destinations, demeaning local and indigenous

cultures.

2.10.3 DIRECT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS

Ecotourism operation occasionally fail to live up to

conservation ideas. It is sometimes overlooked that
ecotourism is a highly consumer-centered activity and
that environmental conservation is a means to further
economic growth. Although ecotourism is intended for
small groups, even a modest increase in population,
however temporary puts extra pressure on the local
environment and necessitates the development of
additional infrastructure and amenities. The construction
of water treatment plants, sanitation, facilities and lodge
come with the exploitation of non-renewable energy
48
sources and the utilization of already limited local
resource. The conversion of natural lands to such tourist
infrastructure is implicated in deforestation and habitat
deterioration of butterflies in Mexico and squirrel
monkeys in Costa Rica. The other cases the environment
suffers because local communities are unable to meet the
infrastructure demands of ecotourism. The lack of
adequate sanitation facilities in many East Africa parks
results in the disposal of campsite sewage in rivers,
contaminating the wildlife. Livestock, and people who
draw water from it.

Aside from environmental degradation with tourist

infrastructure, population pressure from ecotourism also

leaves behind garbage and pollution associated with

Western lifestyle. Although ecotourists claim to be

educationally sophisticated and environmentally

concerned, they rarely understand the ecological

consequences of their visits and how their day-to-day

activities append physical impacts on the environment as

one scientist observes they rarely acknowledge how the

49
meals they eat, the toilet they flush, the water they drink,

and so on, are all parts of broader regional economic and

ecological systems they are helping to reconfigure with

their very activities." Nor do ecotourists recognize the

great consumption of non-renewable energy required to

arrive at their destination, which is typically more remote

than conventional tourism destinations, for instance, an

exotic journey to a place 10,000 kilometers away

consumes about 700 liters of fuel per person .

Ecotourism activities are, in of itself, issues in

environmental impact because they disturb fauna and

flora. Ecotourists believe that because they are only

taking pictures and leaving footprints, they keep

ecotourism sites pristine, but even harmless sounding

activities such as a nature hike can be ecologically

destructive. In the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal, ecotourists

have worn down the marked trails and created alternate

50
routes, contributing to soil impaction, erosion, and plant

damage where the ecotourism activity involves wildlife

viewing, it can scare away animals, disrupt their feeding

and nesting sites, or acclimate them to the presence of

people. In Kenya, disruption of wildlife observers drive

cheetahs off their reserves, increasing the risk of

inbreeding and further endangering the species.

2.10.4 Environment hazards

Unfortunately, industrialization, urbanization, and unsustainable

agriculture practices have all had serious effect on the environment.

Ecotourism is now also playing a role in this depletion. While the term

ecotourism may sound relatively benign, one its most serious impacts is

its consumption of virgin territories (Kamuaro, 200) these invasions

often include deforestation, disruption of ecological life systems and

various forms of pollution, all of which contributes to environmental

degradation. I number of motor vehicles crossing the park increases as

51
tour driver search for species. The number of roads has disrupted the

grass cover which has serious effect on plants and animal species. These

areas also have a higher rate of disturbances and invasive species

because of all the traffic moving off the beaten path into even

undiscovered areas (Kamuaro, 2007). Ecotourism also has an effect on

species through the valued by local people to being highly valued

commodities. The commodification of plants may erase their social

value and lead to overproduction within protected areas. Local people

and their images can also be turned into commodities” (we 2006).

Kamuaro brings up a relatively obvious contradiction, any commercial

venue into unspoiled, pristine land with or without the “eco” prefix as a

contradiction terms. To generate revenue you have to have a high

number of traffic, tourists, while inevitably means a higher pressure on

the environment.

2.10.5 Local people

Most forms of ecotourism are owned by foreign investors and

corporation that provide few benefits to local communities. An

52
Overwhelming majority of profits put into the pockets of investors

instead of reinvestment into the local economy environment protection.

The limited numbers of local people who are employed in the economy

enter at its lowest level, and are unable to live in tourist areas because of

meager wages and a two market system.

In some cases, the resentment by local people results in environmental

degradation. As a highly publicized case, the Maasai nomads in Kenya

killed wildlife in national parks to show aversion to unfair compensation

terms and displacement from traditional lands. The lack of economic

opportunities for local people also constrains them to degrade the

environment as a means of sustenance.

The presence of affluent ecotourists encourage the development of

destructive markets in wildlife souvenirs. Such as the sale of coral

trinkets on tropical islands and animal products in Asia, contributing to

illegal harvesting and poaching from the environment. In Surinam, sea

turtle reserves use a large portion of their budget to guard against these

activities.

53
2.10.6 Displacement of people

One of the most powerful examples of communities being moved in

order to create a park is the story of the Masai. About 70% of national

parks and game reserves ineast Africa are on Masai land

(kamuaro,2007)the first undesirable impact of tourism was that of the

extent of land lost from the Masai culture. Local and national

governments took advantage of the Masai’s ignorance on the situation

and robbed them of huge chunks of grazing land,putting to risk their

only socio-economic livelihood. In Kenya the Masai also have not

gained any economic benefits. Despite the loss of their land,employment

favors better educated workers. Furthermore the investors in this area are

not local and have not put profit back into local economy in some cases

game reserves can be created without informing or consulting local

people, who come to find out about the situation when an eviction notice

is delivered (Kamuaro, 2007). Another source of resentment is the

54
manipulation of the local people by their government. “Eco-tourism

works to create simplistic images of local people and their uses and

understandings of their surroundings. Through the lens of these

simplified images, officials direct policies and project towards the local

people and the local people are blamed if the project fails“ (West, 2006).

Clearly tourism as a trade is not empowering the local people who make

it rich and satisfying. Instead ecotourism exploits and depletes,

particularly in African Masai tribe. It has to be reoriented if it is to be

useful to local communities and to become sustainable (Kamuaro, 2007).

2.10.7 Threats to indigenous cultures

Ecotourism often claims that it preserves and “enhances” local cultures.

However, evidence shows that with the establishment of protected areas

local people have illegally lost their homes, and most often with no

compensation (Kamuaro, 2007). Pushing people onto marginal lands

with harsh climates, poor soils, lack of water, and infested with livestock

and disease does little to enhance livelihoods even when a proportion of

ecotourism profits are directed back into the community. The

55
establishment of parks can create harsh survival realities and deprive the

people of their traditional use of land and natural resources. Ethnic

groups are increasingly being seen as a “backdrop” to the scenery and

wildlife. The local people struggle for cultural survival and freedom of

cultural expression while being “observed” tourists. Local indigenous

people also have strong resentment towards the change “tourism has

been allowed to develop with virtually no controls. Too many lodge

have been built, too much firewood is being used and no limits are being

placed on tourism vehicles. They regularly drive off-track and harass the

wildlife. Their vehicle tracks criss-cross the entire Masai Mara.

Inevitably the bush is becoming eroded and degraded” (Kamuaro, 2007).

2.10.8 Mismanagement

While governments are typically entrusted with the administration and

enforcement of environmental protection, they often lack the

commitment or capacity to management ecotourism sites effectively.

The regulations of environmental protection maybe vaguely defined,

costly to implement, hard to enforce, and uncertain in effectiveness

56
Government regulatory agencies, as political bodies, are susceptible to

making decisions that spend budget on politically beneficial but

environmentally unproductive projects. Because of prestige and

conspicuousness, the construction of an attractive visitor’s center at an

ecotourism site may take precedence over more pressing environmental

concerns like acquiring habitat, protecting endemic species, and

removing invasive ones. Finally, influential groups can pressure and

sway the interests of the government to their favor. The government and

its regulators can become vested in the benefits of the ecotourism

industry which they are supposed to regulate, causing restrictive

environment regulations and enforcement to become more lenient.

Management of ecotourism sites by private ecotourism companies offers

an alternative to the cost of regulation and deficiency of government

agencies. It is believed that these companies have a self interest in

limited environmental degradation, because tourists will pay more for

pristine environment, which translates to higher profit. However, theory

57
indicates that this practice is not economically feasible and will fail to

manage the environment.

The model of monopolistic competition states that distinctiveness will

entail profits, but profit will promote imitation. A company that protects

its ecotourism sites is able to charge a premium for the novel experience

and pristine environment. But when other companies view the success of

this approach, they also enter the market with similar practices,

increasing competition and reducing demand. Eventually, the demand

will be reduced until the economic profit is zero. A cost-benefit analysis

shows that the company bears the cost of environmental protection

without receiving the gains. Without economic incentive, the whole

premise of self-interest through environmental protection is quashed;

instead ecotourism companies will minimize environment related

expenses and maximize tourism demand.

The tragedy of the commons offers another model for economic

unsustainability from environmental protection, in ecotourism sites

utilized by many companies. Although there is a communal incentive to

58
protect the environment, maximizing the benefit in the long run, a

company will conclude that it is in their best interest to utilize the

ecotourism site beyond its sustainable level. By increasing the number of

ecotourists, For instance, a company gains all the economic benefit

while paying only a part of the environmental cost. In the same way, a

company recognizes that there is no incentive to actively protect the

environment; they bear all the cost, while the benefits are shared by all

other companies. The result, again, Is mismanagement.

Taken together, the mobility of foreign investment and lack of economic

incentive for environmental protection means that ecotourism companies

are disposed to establishing themselves in new sites once their existing

one is sufficiently degraded.

2.11 IMPROVING SUSTAINABILTY IN ECOTOURISM

2.11.1 Regulation and accreditation

Because the regulation of ecotourism is poorly implemented or

nonexistent, ecologically destructive greenwashed operations like

underwear hotels, helicopter tours and wildlife theme parks are

59
categorized as ecotourism along with canoeing, camping, photography,

and wildlife observation. The failure to acknowledge responsible, low

impact ecotourism puts these companies at a competitive disadvantage.

Many environmentalists have argued for a global standard of

accreditation. Differentiating ecotourism companies based on their level

of environmental commitment. A national or international regulatory

board would enforce accreditation procedures, with representation from

various groups including governments, hotels, tour operators, travel

agents, guides, airlines, local authorizes, conservation organizations and

non-governments, so that non-compliant companies would be confident

of a genuine ecotourism experience when they see the higher star rating.

In addition, environmental impact assessments could be used as a form

of accreditation. Feasibility is evaluated from a scientific basis, and

recommendations could be made to optimally plan infrastructure, set

tourist capacity, and manage the ecology. This form of accreditation is

more sensitive to site specific conditions.

2.12 GUIDELINES AND EDUCATION

60
An environmental protection strategy must address the issue of

ecotourists removal from the cause-and-effect of their actions on the

environment. More initiatives should be carried out to improve their

awareness, sensitize them to environmental issues and care about the

places they visit.

Tour guides are an obvious and direct medium to communicate

awareness. With confidence of ecotourists and intimate knowledge of

the environment, they actively discuss conservation issues. A tour guide

training program in Costa Rica Tortuguero National Park has helped

mitigate negative environmental impacts providing information and

regulating tourists on the parks’ beaches used by…….. endangered sea

turtles.

2.13 SMALL SCALE, SLOW GROWTH AND LOCAL

CONTROL

The underdevelopment theory of tourism describes a new form of

imperialism I multinational corporations that control ecotourism

resources. These corporation finance and profit from the development of

61
large scale ecotourism that cause excessive environmental degradation,

loss of traditional culture and way of life, and exploitation of local labor.

In Zimbabwe and Nepal’s Annapurna region, where underdevelopment

is taking place, more than 90 percent of ecotourism revenues at

expatriated to the parent countries, and less than 5 percent go into local

communities the lack of sustainability highlights the need for small

scale, slow growth, and locally based ecotourism. Local peoples have a

vested interest in the wellbeing of their community, and there are

therefore more accountable to environmental protection than

multinational corporations. The lack of control, westernization, adverse

impacts to the environment, loss of culture and traditions outweigh the

benefits of establishing large scale ecotourism.

The increased contributions of communities to locally managed

ecotourism create viable economic opportunities, including high level

management positions, and reduce environmental issues associated with

poverty and unemployment. Because the ecotourism experience is

marketed to a different lifestyle from large scale ecotourism, the

62
development of facilities and infrastructure does not need to conform to

corporate Western tourism standards, and can be much simpler and less

expensive. There is a greater multiplier effect on the economy, because

local products, materials and labors are used. Profits accrue locally, and

import leakages are reduced. However, even this form of tourism may

require foreign investment for promotion or start up. When such

investments are required, it is crucial for communities to find a company

or non-governmental organization that reflects the philosophy of

ecotourism; sensitive to their concerns and willing to cooperate with the

expenses of profit. The basic assumption of the multiplier effect is that

the economy starts off with unused resources, for example, that many

workers are cyclically unemployed and much of industrial capacity is

sitting idle or incompletely utilized. By increasing demand in the

economy it is then possible to boost production. If the economy was

already at full employment, with only structural, frictional, or other

supply-side types of unemployment, any attempt to boost demands

would only lead to inflation. For various laissez-faire schools of

economics which embrace Say’s Law and deny the possibility of

63
Keynesian inefficiency and underemployment of resources, therefore,

the multiplier concept is irrelevant or wrong-headed.

As an example, consider the government increasing its expenditure on

roads by $1 million, without a corresponding increase in taxation. This

sum would go to the road builders who would hire more workers and

distribute the money as wages and profits. The households receiving

these incomes will save part of the money and spend the rest on

consumer goods. These expenditures in turn will generate more jobs,

wages, and profits, and so on with the income and spending circulating

around the economy.

The multiplier effect arises because of the induced increases in

consumer spending which occur due to the incomes – and because of the

feedbacks into increasing business revenue, jobs, and income again. This

process does not lead to an economic explosion not only because of the

supply-side barriers at potential output (full employment) but because at

each “round”, the increase in consumer spending is less than the increase

in consumer incomes. That is, the marginal propensity to consume

64
(MPC) is less than one, so that each round some extra income goes into

saving, leaking out of the cumulative process. Each increase in spending

is thus smaller than that of the previous round, preventing an explosion.

Ecotourism has being implemented with care

2.14 FACTORS FOR CHOICE OF ECOTOURISM SITE

Pearce (1992) contend that tourism attraction does not occur evenly or

randomly in space. Developers and planners are faces with such

practical questions as assess in the feasibility of developing a particular

site from a number of alternatives for specific project, or the broader

evaluation of an area in terms of its general tourist potential. He grouped

the factors affecting the tourist potential of area into severe broad

categories; climate, physical conditions, attraction, accessibility, existing

facilities, land tenure use, and consideration such as availability of

regional development incentives. These factors are interrelated and the

categories are not wholly exclusive. Climate for example maybe

attractive; the attractiveness of it area may depend on its access and

certain forms of land tenure may be subject to various forms of

65
constraints. The importance of each of these factors, however depends

on the type of tourism to be developed, the context and stage of tourism

development and the perspectives adopted- that of the developer, the

tourist and the host community.

WTO/UNEP (1994), lists the factors that make an area attractive to

visitors According to it, growing numbers of vacationers seek

recreational activities in warm tropical countries, they want to see

something different, new, spectacular, something to photograph,

sometimes they want to travel in comfort, with minimal effort and often

they want to mix their adventure with leisure activities such as sun

bathing, swimming and shopping. The most successful tour packages

combine a number of interest; wildlife, local customs, sport, historical

sites, spectacular scenes, food and dancing, and most of all, water.

Tropical rainforests which are first may appear surprisingly devoid of

wildlife to many visitors, can be made more attractive with imaginative

presentation; aerial walk ways, board walks, observation towers.

Interpretation centres, indigenous people are guides, river running and

66
hides for wildlife viewing. Adopting these ideas would enable them

compete with Africa savannahs in terms of wildlife or the Himalaysis for

spectacular scenery. Inskeep (1991) noted that not all places have equal

potential for developing tourism. According to him, if there are any

doubts as to whether an area has sufficient resources and market sources

for tourism development or whether the benefits of tourism will

outweigh the cost involved, then a pre-feasibility study assessment of the

overall potential and relative benefits and costs should be carried out

before proceeding with organizing a tourism project. Such a study will

examine the resources available for tourism and potential tourism

markets of the area, and the likely economic, environmental and social

costs and benefits would justify the costs. Tourism development is a

problem of matching naturally or historically given resources with the

demands and preferences of actual or potential tourists (Pearce 1992).

However, variety exists in tourist' demands and preference. There is no

universal measure of tourist attractiveness. Plans however have made to

reduce phenomena of aesthetic or cultural significance to quantifiable

magnitudes for the purpose of comparative evaluation. Pearce (1992)

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argued that the evaluation of the tourist potential of an area is a complex

task and one where methodologies could be further developed and

refine.

A key problem is the comparison and weight of a wide range of

parameters, for any attempts to apply mathematical techniques to these

multifactor evaluations without a sound basis for factor weighting is

bound to fail in principle. But when factor are logically weighted, then

quantitative technique is assume significance. It should. However, be

noted that it is the relative importance of one location to another, rather

than the absolute values, which are initially important

2.15 EVOLVEMENT OF TOURISM IN NIGERIA

The earliest inhabitants of the landmass now called Nigeria paid little

attention to tourism. They were preoccupied mostly with primary

agricultural production. The people devoted the greater part of their day

to farming, hunting or fishing; and evening was mainly time for inter-

compound visits. Recreation was in the form of moonlight plays, story-

68
telling sessions and rehearsals of activities for periodic festivals,

traditional dance outings, wrestling competitions and other games.

In Nigeria, oil exploration and agriculture are the two largest foreign

exchange earners. And because of the uncertainties in agriculture

resulting from the unpredictable climate conditions and fluctuations of

prices of agricultural prodects on the international market, among other

issues, tourism remains a very viable alternative source of investments

and foreign exchange earnings.

With a population of about 140million people made about 835km, a rich

diversity of cultural and ecological resources, Nigeria appears destined

to be indeed the "Giant" of Africa as far as tourism is concerned.

Over independence on the oil sector by Nigeria has grossly affected

other sectors of the economy. Today, nobody talks about the ground nut

pyramids of kano, coal of Enugu. Tin and columbite of Jos-plateau

cocoa of the West etc. which use to generate a lot of revenue for the

country hence complementing the oil sector. To redress this situation,

69
therefore, there is the need to invest in this industry and develop it to

meet international standards

The Nigeria government in her quest to diversify her mono-cultural

economy, which is heavily dependent on petroleum export, has decided

to take some measures to promote travel and tourism. The measures

include the establishment of the National Tourism Policy (NTP) in 1990,

the birth of the Nigerian tourism Development corporation (NTDC) in

1992, the founding of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism

(NIHOTOUR), in Baguada, Kano, and the National travel Bureau

(NTB), a tour operating company of NTDC, (NTDC (2001)) the

adoption of a Tourism master plan and national Tourism Council with

the president as chairman. The aims of these measures can be

summarized as follows:

i. To make Nigeria the ultimate Tourism destination in Africa

ii. To make Tourism one of the greatest foreign exchange earners in

an oil dependent economy.

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2.16 PROBLEMS OF TOURISM IN NIGERIA

The Nigerian governments and state have so far been the sole promoters,

financiers and managers of tourism in Nigeria. Private developers have

not been very interested, probably due to lack of a well-defined policy

on tourism.

Funds meant for the development of the tourism sector were either not

adequate or not disbursed at all. In some cases where they were

disbursed, they were diverted to other uses. For instances, in the Third

National Development Plan, provision was made for 120 million but

only about 16 percent was disbursed to the tourism sector.

The 15-member Nigeria Tourism Board (NTB) had vast responsibilities

but was not conferred with necessary executive powers to enable it to

perform. Besides, the legal framework of the NTB, as established by the

Decree, had inherent defects which eventually rendered the Board

ineffective. Such defects were obvious in the clause empowering it to

acquire land which the Land Use Decree of 1978 had vested in the hand

of the State Governors. The Board thus failed because the decree did not

71
sustain a well-planned and co-coordinated effort towards development

of tourism industry.

However, it will be rather unfair to conclude that the Nigeria tourism

Board, throughout its long period of existence, did not achieve anything.

For one thing, it has always been on its toes to encourage and promote

tourism. Although the NTB faced serious financial predicaments, yet it

succeeded in advising the Federal and State Governments on matters

affecting tourism planning and development. It served as a major link

between the Nigeria government and the world tourism organization

office in Spain, sending representatives to the organization's conferences

and seminars.

Back home the NTB had liaised with the corporate bodies and ministries

to organize seminars, conferences and lectures and to sponsor trade fairs.

For instances, in 1979,the NTB sponsored the first National seminar on

the role of tourism in Nation Building at the federal palace Hotel, Lagos.

The board devoted its attention to publicity through printing and

circulation of posters and guides as well as to providing consultancy

72
services to upcoming operators and developers. The registration and

classification of the hotels which were its primary sources of funds were

gradually taken away from it b the state governments. Tourism statistics

and data collection, storage and retrieval were not fully developed.

The following are the other major obstacles which have hampered the

development of tourism in Nigeria.

1. Low level of demand, mainly caused by poor perception of tourism

in Nigeria, which is a result of inadequate publicity and negative

reports by the western media;

2. Inadequate measures to attract private investors;

3. Insufficient tourism facilities, sites and supporting infrastructure;

4. Insufficient fund

5. Problem of land acquisition

6. Dearth of data and statistics on the tourism facilities, services and

potentials in the country; and apathy of many Nigerians towards

tourism.

2.17 TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

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Since Nigeria's independence in 1960, six factors of economic

significance have either singly or jointly proved conducive to the

development of recreation and tourism in the country. These are:

 The relatively rapid transformation of the economy as result of

which an increasing number of workers became engaged in non-

agricultural jobs, particularly in the manufacturing and service of

the economy

 A rise in the real and disposable personal income of the citizens

 Reduction in the number of working days in a week from six to

five, thus allowing more leisure time for workers in government

ministries and other establishments

 Increased mobility through vehicular transport, a sizeable

proportion of which is owned on a personal basis

 Provision of recreational facilities and services in many states and

Centers in the country and

 Establishment of tourism boards in many states

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The Nigeria tourist Association (NTA) was set up in September 1962, to

superintend the tourism industry in Nigeria, in 1963, Nigeria joined the

International Union of Travel Organization (IUTO), now world Tourism

Organization (WTO), based in Spain. In 1970, she joined other members

of the WTO in celebrating the world Tourism Day for the first time.

Since then, door to Nigeria has been open for foreign tourists. The States

and Federal Government have joined hands to promote and manage the

expanding sector. Over the years, several conferences and seminars have

been held to promote the development of tourist. Such conferences took

place in Lagos in 1975, 1980 and 1983, in Benin City in 1988, and in

Illorin in 1989, to consider a "Trade and Tourist Policy for Nigeria". By

1976 in view of the world-wide economic crises resulting from the

petroleum crisis, the world Bank, organized a seminar on the social,

cultural and economic importance of tourism and subsequently

encouraged, especially less developed countries, to invest in the tourism

industry. This was with a view to: earning more foreign exchange;

increasing national income; encouraging and stimulating the

75
development of the backward and rural areas; attaining social and

political understanding and integration; and , achieving general physical

development of the economy.

2.18 STRATEGIES FOR HARNESSING THE POTENTIALS OF

ECOTOURISM

Ecotourism being a very vital component of the broader tourism industry

has huge economic potential and for it to be maximally exploited, there

are strategies that have to be adopted. Among these are:

a) Marketing

Traditionally market can be defined as "the development of

products/services which are consent with client needs, pricing promoting

and distributing these products/services effectively (National park

service (1984)'. Marketing is based on the 'four Ps of product, place,

price and promotion, with the emphasis on attracting, maintaining and

expanding a customer base. Traditional marketing differs a bit from

ecotourism marketing because of its complexity. Stephen Wearing and

John Neil (1999) gave a definition of ecotourism marketing as 'the

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development ofecologically sustainable tourism products and the

pricing, promotion so impact on the physical and cultural environments

is minimized while maintaining some levels of profit commensurate

with these objectives.

The complexity of ecotourism marketing also requires an expanded

concept of marketing, which include five other 'Ps'- positioning,

partnership, programming, packaging and people.

i. Positioning

Ecotourism requires that a destination selects and outs priority

focus on developing for ecotourism needs to be carefully defined.

In order to differentiate your ecotourism product from your

competitors, accuracy and authenticity are essential. Too often

destinations are promising access to flora and fauna in their

promotional offer which cannot be experienced directly, thus

leading to visitor dissatisfaction.

ii. Partnership

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 Ecotourism requires integrated marketing involving the public and

private sector. Cooperative advertising is essential.

iii. Programming

Special events, seasonal activities, festivals and other hallmark

activities which expand, enhance or augment the ecotourism

product can motivate people to select a particular destination,

extend length of stay, increase spending and help cope with

seasonality problems.

iv. Packaging

Providing combinations of transport facilities and services to

individuals or group for a single transaction provides predictable

capacity, reduces cost of sales, hence lower prices, the most

importantly, it saves the consumer time

v. People

Usually, travel consumers are actively involved in ecotourism -

most nature types of tourism involve extensive 'do it yourself'

activities. Highly trained ecotourism personnel are in short supply

world-wide. More extensive training efforts are needed,

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 particularly those involving local guides and interpretive

personnel.

b) Ecologde

According to the international Ecotourism Society (TIES) "the term

ecolodge is an industry label used to identify a nature dependent tourist

lodge that meets the philosophy of ecotourism" (Hawkins et al., 1995). It

must be stressed that "the most important thing about an ecolodge is that

the ecolodge is not the most important thing" (Ceballos-Lascurain,

1997), i.e it is the quality of the surrounding environment that must

counts: the nearby natural and cultural attractions - and the way

ecotourism circuits are set up, operated and marketed, also the way in

which local populations are actively involves in the process. The main

reason for a tourist coming to an ecolodge is that it provides the

opportunity of being in close contact with nature (in some cases,

supplemented by interesting cultural elements). In any ecolodge project

there is the need to apply a new approach to architecture, now widely

termed as ecological design or "ecodesign". Ecodesign may be defined

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as "any form of design that, being integrated to the surrounding

ecosystem, minimizes its negative environmental impacts" (Ceballos-

Lascurain, 1997). Ecodesign is an integrative and ecologically

responsible design discipline. It consists of joining isolated efforts in

what has been loosely termed as "green architecture", sustainable

agriculture, ecological engineering and many other fields, sometimes

widely dispersed, in which we must include ecotourism.

Ecolodge development, being a consequence of ecotourism, is a new

phenomenon and lessons are been learned every day around the world in

this fascinating and fast growing field. There are several areas where the

ecolodge development is been successfully implemented . the areas

around the world include Costa Rica, Belize, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil

(Mainly the Amazonian area), Venezuela, Australia, New Zealand,

Malaysia, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Malawi and Botswana. The

term ecolodge is a relatively new concept. It was formally launched in

the marketplace at the first international Ecolodge form and field

seminar held in 1994 at Maho Bay camps in the U.S. virgin Islands. An

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ecolodge is a tourism accommodation facility that meets the following

criteria. It conserves the surrounding environment, both natural and

cultural. It has minimal impacts on the natural surrounding during

construction it fits into specific physical and cultural contents tough

careful attention to form, landscaping and color as well as the use of

localized architecture.

Fig 2.2 PHOTO OF AN ECOLODGE

Ahanta Eco Lodge, Busua, Ghana

It provides control handling and disposal of solid waste and sewage. It

meets its energy needs through passive design and combines these with

their modern counterparts for greeter sustainability. It endeavors to work

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together with the local community. It offers interpretative programme to

educate both its employees and tourists about the surrounding natural

and cultural environments. It contributes to sustainable local

development through research programs. The management and

operation of an ecolodge differs from that of a Mainstream hotel.

c) Interpretation

A focus on the dimensions of visitor experience reveal that the visitor is

concerned not with simply looking at a setting or object, but with feeling

and realizing some of its value. Interpretations becomes very essential to

orient a visitors cognitive and emotional state in order to raise

awareness, enhance understanding and hopefully clarify or enlarge each

participants perspective and attitude.

The Queensland National Parks and Wildlife Service (Carter, 1984)

defined interpretation as a special process of stimulating and

encouraging and appreciation of the natural and cultural heritage of a

region, as well as a means of communication nature conservation ideas

and practices Interpretation Australia Association (1995) gave a multi

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centric definition of interpretation "as a means of communicating ides

and feelings which helps people enrich their understanding and

appreciation of their world, and their role within it" there are various

interpretation techniques it could be oral or tangibles as visitor centers,

displays, exhibits and signs, publications etc.

I. Interpretation techniques
There are more ways to interpret than one could hope to cover,

because each technique is like a piece of artwork, crafted from the

creativity of the interpreter. In this sense, one of the most creative

interpretation is barely recognized as such. For example within the

lobby of an ecolodge or museum the material used in construction,

the pattern of pavers on the floor, the choice of music off suggest

ideas and feelings of which the visitors may or may not

consciously be aware. Another example is the presence of staff

within a site and the way in which they present themselves to

visitors (McIntyre et al., 1993; WTO,1990). As staffs move about

their normal duties they can casually engage visitors in

conversation, provide relevant information and obtain some

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 feedback. Inorder for the contract to be effective, however the staff

must be knowledgeable, which may require training in visitor

communication and hospitality. The most widely recognized

interpretative techniques therefore tends to be the more tangible

ones, such as visitor centre, publications, guided tours and

educational activities, display and exhibits and signs.

1. Visitors centers
Visitor Centre are special building or rooms in which exhibits and

display can be presented in related comfort and controlled

surrounding. Exhibits may include photographs arranged in wall or

panel displays, map models, mounted specimens, or diagrams.

Visitor centers are very useful for showing ‘the big picture‘ – such

as processes, histories and other features that cannot be easily

depicted on-site. Visitor centers often house permanent and

continuous audio visual presentations in an auditorium. The visitor

experience within a visitor center typically finishes with a gift shop

selling extension material such as detailed guidebooks and maps.

Where necessary, visitor centers can be enlarged or combined with

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 education center. The most effect visitor centers are designed from

the inside out, meaning that their interpretative theme and purpose

drives the design and construction of the building, rather than vice

versa.

II. Education centers

Education centers are designed building or separate places within a

visitor center, designed to deliver educational activities and house

facilities and supporting material. Education centers usually feature

low key classrooms to hold activities and discussion sessions,

through the surrounding environment outside the environment

center is critical to delivering many of the activities. The most

effective education centers are those containing one or more full

time education officers who have developed their programmes to

dovetail with school curricular.

III. Displays and exhibits

Display and exhibits are typically developed as permanent features

within a museum or visitor/education centre, or as a mobile ‘mini-

centre’, or mobile display. They typically feature objects and

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specimens/dioramas, scale models, live exhibits, panels of text, diagrams

and photographs. Displays and exhibits are useful because they are

relatively cost effective, and are portable enough to be located indoors or

outdoors. The most effective exhibits are designed with a specific

audience in mind, the most effective mobile displays are those that are

staffed to add a more personal touch to the interpretation.

IV. Publications
Publications are a cost-effective way of reaching a lot of people,

Publications can come in the form of brochures, leaflet, note-sheets,

maps, books, poster, postcards, calenders and stickers. Publication tends

to be based around information rather than interpretation. For example,

the standard brochure promoting a region or site tends to be more

information-oriented. None the less, there have been some highly

interpretive posters that use layered presentations of images and ideas to

progressively reveal underlying ideas. Some of the disadvantages of

publications are that they have limited capacity to respond to different

visitor needs, they are expensive to distribute and manage, and they can

quickly be outdated and need upgrading.

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V. Self-guide trails
Self-guide trails involve a series of prescribed stops along a route that

visitors travel. The route may be a road, a walking track, a river, or a

railway line. Each stop provides a feature that is interpreted via a

brochure, a sign or an audio facility such as radio or cassette. Each stop

is usually marked by a numbered post, label or sign. A self-guided trail

allows the visitor freedom to move at their own pace, stopping for as

long as they want. Self-guided tours have similar problems to

publications but are similarly cost- effective per visitor contact. A study

in Sweden of self-guided tours for campers found that it was much

easier to attract the independent travellers to self-guided tours for

exactly those reasons (Hultman, 1992).

VI. Guided tours

Face-to-face interpretation is considered to be one of the most

powerful and worthwhile interpretive techniques available because it

can be continually tuned to the type of visitor(s) participating. In

terms of commercially run ecotourism, guided tours are perhaps the

most widely used techniques. The method is especially useful with

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 school children and formal tour groups, or as a means of controlling

where visitors go and what they do. A trained guide accompanying a

group discusses features along a predetermined route adding

additional detail or perspectives according to the interest and

responses of the group. One of the strengths of guided tours is that the

guide can adapt what is said to the particular interest of each group.

Guides working for ecotourism operators must be knowledge about

many aspects of the attractions and be fluent in the major languages

of the visitors. One of the limitations of guided tours is their high cost

per visitors, and their continual reliance on the personality and

commitment of the guide to deliver a high quality experience. In

addition, the large proportion of visitors may find guides an

interference that impinges upon their desired sense of freedom.

ii. Principles for successful interpretation

Successful interpretation typically reflects a number of key principles.

People learn better when they are actively involved in the learning

process. People learn better when they using as many senses as

appropriate. It is generally recognized that people retain appropriately

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10% of what they hear, 30% of what they read, 50% of what they see

and 90% of what they do. Insights that people discover for themselves

are most memorable as they stimulate a sense of excitement and growth.

Learning requires activity on part of the learner. Being aware of the

usefulness of the knowledge being acquired makes the learning process

more effective. People learn best from first-hand experience (Lewis,

1980). With these factors in mind, it should be possible to develop as

effective communication network that promotes ecotourism and

subsequently a conservation ethic. Interpretation should leave ecotourist

with the sense of enjoyment and satisfying conservation objectives

(forestell, 1990). Protected areas provide one of the essential ingredients

for successful interpretation. They provide the opportunity for natural

process to be observed, for the inter-relationship of natural ecological

systems to be appreciated and for the consequences of human change

and ultimate degradation to be understood (Kenchingtion, 1990). If

theseopportunities are realized, then people can look forward to more

informed society, capable of weighing up the implications of local,

national and international decisions which may affect the environment,

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fostering a willingness to participate actively in decision-making process

(Ham, 1992).

iii. Link between Interpretation and Ecotourism

In order to understand how interpretation works, it is important to

understand how interpretation relates to attitudinal and behavioural

change in contributing to environmental awareness. This in turn requires

an understanding of what attitudes are and what kinds of cognitive

process are involved in their change. If we argue for greater use of

interpretation as a means of generating attitudes and behavioural choice

that will assist in conserving our environment, we must have some ideas

of how the process of gaining an environmental consciousness occurs.

Inorder for natural areas to stimulate environmental awareness, people

presently uncommitted to conservation must be encouraged to visit both

nation parks and reserves. In order to achieve a change in attitude, they

must be provided with much more than simple information and

propaganda when they do visit. Recent research by Beaumont (1997)

suggested that interpretation can induce a change to understanding and a

positive shift in attitude amongst individual who already have some

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form of conservation ethic. However the same research suggests that

visitors with a limited understanding and narrow attitude are less likely

to be influenced by interpretation provided by an ecotourism operator.

Thus, interpretation may not necessarily lead to a conservation ethic and

flow-on behaviour, nor even retention of a positive attitude (Cater,

1979). However, this may be due to the standard of interpretation being

delivered not reaching a level that induces visitors to shift their position.

Fundamentally, they require an experience that will change their

fundamental thinking about the environment and its preservation

(Forestell, 1990). Clearly, the ability of interpretation to enact attitudinal

change is in the large part dependent upon the availability and

effectiveness of resources to provide material that can be understood by

the general public and is able to maintain their interest both on-site and

post experience. Given the relative lack of research on interpretation

finding its way back to interpreters, this situation seems to be intractable

for the short to medium term. The effects of limited research and

subsequent poor planning in the past were largely responsible for the

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culture of interpreters that was overtly focused on technique delivery, at

the expense of a sound rationale (McArthur, 1996).

2.19 HOW ECOTOURISM CAN CONTRIBUTE TO

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION

The Eco-tourism industry can contribute to conservation through:

Financial contributions

 Direct financial contributions

Tourism can contribute directly to the conservation of sensitive areas

and habitat. Revenue from park-entrance fees and similar resources

can be allocated specifically for the protection and management of

environmentally sensitive areas. Special fees for parks operations or

conservation activities can be collected from tourists or tour

operators.VV

The tour operator discovery initiative, which is a member of the tour

operators initiative for sustainable tourism development, makes an

annual financial contribution to the orang-utan foundation of some

US$ 45,000. The money is earned from only 5 tour groups of 10

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people each visiting the Tabnjing putting National park in central

Kalimantan. The park is under huge pressures from deforestation and

river pollution from unrestricted gold mining. This money directly

funds park staff and rangers, rehabilitation efforts for young orang-

utans, and the car center. It provides almost the economic support for

saving this pack, where the park fees are officially only the equivalent

of 12 pence a day.

 Contributions to government revenues

Governments collect money in more far-reaching and indirect ways

that are not linked to specific parks or conservation areas. User

income taxes, taxes on sale or rental of recreation equipment, the

license fees for activities such as hunting and fishing can provide

government with the funds needed to manage natural resources. Such

funds can be used for overall conservation programs and activities,

such as park ranger salaries and park

In the general lakes region of Africa, mountain gorillas, one of the

world’s most endangered great apes, lay a critical ecological,

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economic and political role. Their habitat lies on the borders of north

western Rwanda, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and south

western Uganda. Despite 10years of political crises and civil war in

the region, the need for revenue from apes and their habitat.

Establishment of a gorilla tracking permit, which costs US$250 plus

park fees, means that just three habituated gorilla groups of about 38

individuals in total can generate over US$90,000 a year to Uganda.

Tourism funds have contributed to development at the local, national

and regional level. The presence of such a valuable tourism revenue

source in the fragile afromontane forest ensures that these critical

habitats are protected, thus fulfilling their valuable ecological

function including local climate regulation, water catchment, and

natural resources for local communities.

 Alternative employment
Tourism can provide an alternative to development scenarios that may

have greater environmental impacts. The Eco-escuela de Espanol, a

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Spanish language school created in 1996 as part of a conservation

international project in the Guatemalan village of San Andres, is an

example. The community-owned schools, located in the Maya

Biosphere Reserve, combines individual language courseswith home

stay opportunities and community-led eco-tours. It receives around

1,800 tourists yearly, mostly from the US Europe, and employs most

100 residents, of whom around 60% were previously engaged in

mostly illegal timber extraction, hunting an milpas, or slashed-and-

burn agriculture. Careful monitoring in the 2000 has shown that,

among the families benefiting from the business, the majority has

significantly reduced hunting practices, and the number and extension

of ‘slash-and-burn’ agricultural plots. Furthermore, as most families

in the village benefit directly or indirectly from the school,

community-managed private resources have been established and

social pressures against hunting has increased Maintenance. In Costa

Rica, for example, tourism represents 72% of national monetary

reserves, generates 140,000 jobs and produces 8.4% of the gross

domestic product. The country has 25% of its territory classified

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under some category of conversion management in 1999, protected

areas welcomed 866,083 national and foreign tourists, who generated

about US$2.5 million in admission fees and payment of services.

 Improved environmental management and planning

Sound environmental management of tourism facilities and especially

hotels can increase the benefit to natural areas. But this requires

careful planning of controlled development, based on analysis of the

environmental resources of the area. Planning helps to make choice

between conflicting uses, orto find ways to make them compatible.

By planning early for tourism development, damaging and expensive

mistakes can be prevented, avoiding the gradual deterioration of

environmental assets significant to tourism.

Cleaner production techniques can be important tools for planning

and operating tourism facilities in a way that minimize their

environmental impacts. For example, green building (using energy-

efficient and non-polluting construction materials, sewage system and

energy source is an increasingly important way for the tourism

96
industry to decrease its impact on the environment. And because

waste treatment and disposal are often major, long-term

environmental problems in the tourism industry, pollution prevention

and waste minimization techniques are especially important for the

tourism industry.

 Environmental awareness rising

Eco-tourism has the potential to increase public appreciation of the

environment and to spread awareness of the environmental problems

when it brings people into closer contact with nature and the

environment. This confrontation may heighten awareness of the

nature and lead to environmentally conscious behaviour and activities

to preserve the environment, for instance Honduran school children

form the capital city Tegucigalpa are routinely taken to visit La Tigra

cloud forests visitor center, funded in part by eco-tourist dollars, to

learn about the intricacies of the rain forest

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 If it is to be sustainable in the long run, tourism must incorporate the

principles and practices of sustainable consumption. Sustainable

consumption includes building consumer demand for products that

have been made using cleaner production techniques for service that

have been made using cleaner production techniques and for services-

that are provided in a way that minimizes environmental impacts. The

tourism industry can play a key role in providing environmental

information and raising awareness among tourists of the

environmental consequences of their actions. Tourists and tourism –

related business consume an enormous quantity of good and services;

moving them towards using those that are produced and provided in

an environmentally sustainable way, from cradle to grave, could have

an enormous positive impact on the planet environment.

CHAPTER THREE

3.0 STUDY AREA AND METHODOLOGY

3.1 BACKGROUND

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The federal Capital Territory, Abuja was created as a result of the need

to establish for Nigerians an ethnically neutral, climatically comfortable

and centrally accessible territory to all parts of the federation. An

enabling Decree (Decree No 6 of 1976) was promulgated to effect the

creation of the federal Capital. The federal Capital Development

Authority was entrusted with the responsibility to design, build and

manage the now Capital Territory. The seat of the Federal Government

was moved from Lagos to Abuja on December 12, 1991. As a result,

many ministries and parastatals have since moved into Federal Capital

Territory. Abuja has also since witnessed tremendous increase in

economic, political and social activities. The population has grown

tremendously since then. Based on 2005 census figures, Abuja is

estimated to have a population of about 1.9 million people

3.2 GEOGRAPHY OF FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY

The Federal Capital Territory is located in the geographical centre of

Nigeria. It has a land area of 8,000 square kilometers. It is bounded on

the north by Kaduna state, the west by Nigeria state, the east and

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southeast by Nassarawa State and the southwest by Kogi State. It falls

within latitude 70°20° North of the Equator and longitudes 60°45°and

70°39°

The FCT’s natural endowments such as; it's rolling hills, isolated

highlands and other endearing features make it a delight. The area is thus

touristically conducive for eco and adventure tourism. The savanna

grassland of the North and the middle Belt, the richness of the tropical

rain forest of the south and equable climate all combined make the FCT

a soil-rich agriculture haven

3.2.1 Weather and Climate

As in the tropics, the FCT experience two weather conditions annually.

These are the equivalent of summer in the temperature climate). The

rainy season begin from April and ends in October. Within this period,

there is a brief interlude of harmattan occasioned by the North East

Trade Wind, with the main feature of dust haze, intensified coldness and

dryness. Fortunately, the high altitudes and undulating terrain of the

FCT act as moderating influence on the weather on the territory. Rainfall

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in the FCT reflects the territory’s location on the windward side of

Plateau and the zone of rising air masses. The annual total rainfall in the

range of 1100mm to 1600mm

3.2.2 Vegetation

They are now designated the Federal Capital Territory falls within the

savanna zone vegetation of the west African sub-region. Patches of rain

forest, however, occur in the Gwagwa plains, especially in the gullied

train to the south and the rugged southeastern parts of the territory.

These areas of the FCT form one of the surviving occurrence of the

mature forest vegetation in Nigeria. The dominant vegetation of the

territory is, however, classified into three savanna types

The park of Grassy Savanna: this is about 53percent (i.e4,231square

km) of the total area of the FCT. Vegetation occurs annually and tree

species found includes; Albizia, Zygia, Butyropernum paradoxum,

Anniella, Oliveri and Parkia Clappertonia.

101
The savanna Woodland: this region covers 12.8 percent of 1,026 square

km of the territory. It occurs mostly on the Gurara, Robo and Rubochi

plains and surrounding hills. Common trees found in this region include;

afzelia, Africans anogeissus, leicarpus, butyroscarpus paradoxum,

Daniella Oliveri, khaya senegalensis, prosopis Africans, uapaca

togoensis, Albizia, vitex doniant, bombox costatum and ptrecarpus

erineceus.

The shrub savannah: This class of vegetation occurs extensively in

rough terrain close to hills and ridges in all parts of the territory. It

covers about 12.9 percent or 1,032 square km of the land areas. Tree

species found in it include: antiaries africana, anthocleista novils ceiba

pentandra, cola gigantean, celtis spp, chorophora excels (Iroko) khaya

grandifolia (Benin mahogany)Termialia superb (Afara ), troplichton

sceleroxylon and dracacna arborea. Certain trees species normally

associated with other parts of the rain forest in the south of Nigeria are

also found in some of the forest patches, e.g piptaniatrum africanum

(agboin) liphira alata (ekki) and terminalia ivorensis (idigbo). Apart

102
from the rain forest elements, some dominant trees species of the

savanna wood land yield high quality timber, e.g , Anogeissus leicarpus,

Daneilla oliveri, khaya senegalensis and ptrecarpus arenaceous.

3.2.3 Geology

The FCT is almost predominantly underlain by high grade metamorphic

and igneous rocks of precambrian age. Generally trending NNESSW,

these rocks consist of gneiss, migmatites and granites. A schist belt

outcrops along the eastern margin of the area. The belt broadens

southwards and attain a maximum development to the southeastern

sector of the area where the topography is rugged and the relief is high.

In general, the rocks are highly sheared (kogbe, 1978). The rocks of the

area can be divided into five major groups as follows: metamorphosed

supracrustal (Exogenetic) Rocks : Mica Schist(sh), Marble (m),

Amphibolite and Amphibole schist (a), fine medium Grained Genesis.

Migmatitic Complex: Migmatite (mi), Migmatite Genesis (mg), Granite

Gneiss(gg), porphyroblasticGraniteGnesis (pg), leucocratic

GraniteGnesis (Ig), intrusive Granite Coarse Grained Granite (eg).

103
Minor intrusions : Rhyolites (ry). Quartzfeldspar Porphyry(py), DACA

titea and Anddesites(an), Dolerites and Basalts (b) other Formations:

Quartzite (qz), pegmatite (p), Quartz vein(q)

3.2.4 Relief

The lowest elevation in the Federal Capital Territory is found in the

extreme southwest where the flood plain of the river Gurara is at

elevation of about 70m above sea level. From the, the land rises

irregularly eastwards, northwards and northwestwards. The highest part

of the territory is in the northeast where there are many peaks over 760m

above sea level. Hills occur either as clusters or form long ranges. The

most prominent of these include the Gawa range in the northwest, the

Gurfata range southwest of suleja, the Bwari-Aso range in the northwest,

the idon kasa range north west of Kuje and the Wuna range north of

Gwagwalada. Elsewhere in the territory, there are many rather roundish

isolated hills usually called inselbergs. In between the major hills are

extensive plains, the most important of which are the Gwagwa plains,

the Iku-Gurara plains, the Robo plains and the Rubochi plains. Indeed,

104
about fifty two percent of the Federal Capital Territory consists of

plains. Out of these plains, the Gwagwa plain was selected for the

building of the Federal Capital city (FCC)

3.2.5 Soil

The soils of the territory are generally shallow and sandy in nature,

especially on the major plains such as Iku-Gurara, Roboes, and Rubochi.

The high sand content particularly makes the soils to be highly erodible.

Those on the famous Gwagwa plains are however deep and clayey,

perhaps reflecting the influence of parent materials like gabbro and fine

medium textured biotite granite. Thus, the soils rich of the Gwagwa

plains are the most fertile and productive. In addition, their being more

or less from ally exposed interfluve summits, makes them ideal for

urban development.

3.2.6 Ecological Problems

Movement of people into the territory has continuously been on the

increase, a very significant aspect of this increase in the FCT population

is its concentration in few areas; i.e the city and the satelite towns of

105
Nyanya, Karu, Idu, Gwagwa, Gwagwalada, Kubwa, Kuje, Bwari, Abaji

and Kwali.

Beside overstretching of social amenities, such a concentration naturally

increases the intensity of several human activities, with enormous

consequences on the environment. The major ecological problems that

are thus inflicted on the FCT include: Soil Erosion and Gullying: Human

activities like urban growth, vegetation clearance and cultivation have

pushed land use activities towards highly fragile areas, and increased the

fragility of less fragile ones. Today, there are several areas of heavily

eroded badlands' surfaces and numerous gullies of varying dimensions,

some of which cover up to about 0.1 sq.km in areal extent

Soil degradation: another dimension to effect of population increase on

the FCT environment is the increased pressure being exerted on land for

food production. Under such situation, more nutrients are being exported

out of the soil than are being replaced through conventional soil fertility

maintenance practices. A major implication of such removal is

occurrence of soil degradation. Through no comprehensive studies have

106
so far been conducted to examine the extent of this problem, it is

nevertheless reasonable to assume that under the present farming

systems, soils of the FCT are undergoing some forms of degradation. At

any rate, processes like erosion and vegetation removal are themselves

important agents of soil degradation.

Devegetation: To prepare lands for both cultivation and urban

development, some forms of vegetation clearance have take place

irrespective of the inherent role the vegetation is playing in sustaining

the ecosystem of the area where the clearance is being made. On the

other hand, game chasers sometimes freely set vegetation on fire in

order to enable them have access to wild animals. In the FCT, the

problem has assumed a serious dimension, because, while there are

some guidelines for urban growth for instance, none exists for ensuring

that the development becomes environment friendly. However, there are

attempt, many of them private, being made to afforest areas around

settlements to particularly provide shade and for aesthetics.

107
3.3 HUMAN GEOGRAPHY OF FEDERAL CAPITAL

TERRITORY

3.3.1 Ethnic Composition, Languages, Cultures and the Arts

Early settlers in the FCT were mainly of the Kwa language group found

predominantly around the Niger-Benue confluence. They are known to

have settled in the area many centuries before the jihad of the 19th

century. Other ethnic groups in the territory include the Bassaa, Gades,

Gwandaras, koros and Ganaganas all of which have strong linguistic

affiliations with the kwa language group that dominated the present

middle belt region of northern Nigeria.

At the time of the FCT's creation the main architectural design was the

round mud house type of the Sudanese style with few rectangular types.

By the side of the houses are usually situated some cone shaped

granaries, indicating the people's strong attachment to agriculture, with

more influx of people into territory, leading to creation of some forms of

cosmopolitan co inhabitation practices, the rounded styled houses are

gradually disappearing, paving the way for dominance of rectangular

108
mud structures and in some cases bricks houses owned by the more

affluent.

However within the city, and satellite towns, very modern buildings with

fantastic architectural designs dot the entire landscape. Infact Abuja

today especially the (FCC) remains one the most modern cities in

Africa.

3.3.2 Religion

Through traditional religious worshippers still remain in the territory,

majority of the inhabitants belong to either the christian or muslim faith.

The persistence of traditional religious practices in the territory, despite

the aggressive ways in which Islam and Christianity spread over

northern Nigeria is itself an indication of the attachment which the

people still have with their past cultural practice

3.3.3 Population Structure and Distribution:

According to the 1991 population census (Provisional figures), the

population of the FCT was 378,671 and is now (Year 2005 census)

estimated at about 1.9 million. However as at 1981, it was only 170,575.

109
A 1984 survey shows that this population was then overwhelming Gwari

although the Bassa ethnic group was also fairly represented. Analysis of

the 1991 National Population Census data in respect of the FCT shows a

somewhat equitable distribution of the population of the territory. Three

other groups (namely 40-44, 45-49, 50 and above) each constitutes about

five percent of the total population of the territory. The results further

indicate that literacy is higher among the former age groups, suggesting

that those of ages of between six to thirty nine are comparatively better

educated in the territory. In the case of the proportion of the active

workforce engaged in varoius economic activities, the results also shows

that as at 1991, of the estimated active working population of about

122,265, about fifteen percent each were engaged in professional and

technical related sales and service works. On the other hand, about six

percent each belong to the production and agricultural sectors

respectively. With the influx of people, especially after the 1991formal

movement of the nation's seat of power to the territory, it is expected

that such distributional characteristics of the population would have been

greatly distorted.
110
3.3.4 Urban and Rural Development and Patten of Human

Settlement:

By 1981, no settlement in the FCT could be described as a town since

none had a population anywhere near 5,000 not to talk of 20,000. The

settlements with populations remotely approaching this were karu, Abaji

and Gwagwalada with populations of 4,125,3360 and 2,395, today many

areas in the territory could be described as urban in so far as they have

populations of 20,000 or more. These include kwali, Bwari, Ruboci,

Karshi, Gwagwa and Karmo.

It should naturally be expected that as urbanization intensifies in the

territory, Urban crises (slums, insecurity, waste accumulation etc. )

would escalate. Rural development in the FCT hinges largely on

agriculture, the main occupation of the area's inhabitants. Fortunately,

the climate of the territory, is quite favorable for agriculture especially

through enhanced farming practices and provision of rural infrastructure.

3.3.5 Problem of Urban Primacy:

111
Because most of the government establishments are located in the

Municipal area of the territory, this part of the FCT has for long been

enjoying the privilege of being a primate city. However, of recent, high

lands values within the municipal council is necessitating the drift, away

of people and their activities to other urban and semi-urban areas of the

territory. Also, some policies of the government are causing some

government agencies and institution to be located outside the Municipal

area. For instance, several institutions under the Federal Ministry of

Education are cited outside the Municipal area. With time, therefore, the

primacy of the Municipal area will begin to diminish

3.4 Ecotourism Attraction Sites

The potential sites for ecotourism activities across the territory include

the following:

i. Aso Rock

ii. Lower Usuma Dam

iii. Jabi Lake and Resort

iv. Millennium Park

112
 v. Area 1 Park (Treasure Island)

vi. Abuja Zoological Park

vii. IBB Golf Course

viii. Bwari- Dutse Range

3.5 METHODOLOGY

Abuja by structure and composition is already stratified. It is broadly

broken into Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), Federal Capital City

(FCC)and area Councils. The Federal Capital City is further broken into

districts and phases. Each strata can be considered as an independent

unit for sampling purposes. Within every strata, respondents were

chosen randomly using stratified random sampling technique.

Questionnaires were administered to residents/tourists randomly within

chosen strata. A total of two hundred (200) respondents were covered

during the questionnaire survey. Other data for this research work are

sourced from:

i. direct observation of Ecological features as natural parks, water

bodies, botanical and zoological gardens, geological features,

113
 ii. analysis of documented information such as previously published

and unpublished materials from textbooks, journals, travel guides,

news magazines and newspapers

iii. use of existing maps, charts and plans

iv. extensive use of desktop research.

Areas around the potential ecotourism sites identified within the study

area were chosen as the main ones from where respondents for the study

were sourced. Accordingly, the following locations/sites within the

study area served as the sampling units for the study:

1. Area 1 zoological park (Treasure Island [Garki District])

2. Abuja zoological park and Garden (Asokoro district)

3. Millennium Park (Central Area District)

4. Jabi Lakes and Resort (Jabi District).

Figure 3.1 gives the locations of these various sites across the study area,

while plates 1 to 4 gives the views of these locations.

Purposeful random sampling was hence used in selecting these

locations/sites, but within every location the respondents were randomly

114
chosen. A total of 200 respondents were chosen across the five sites (50

per site). To ensure effective distribution and administration of

questionnaires, field assistants were employed to help perform the task

of administering the questionnaires to respondents.

The contents of the questionnaires were analyzed first by coding and

then by the use of simple descriptive statistics (mean and percentages).

FIGURE 3.1: LOCATION OF IDENTIFIED ECOTOURISM SITES IN

FCC

115
 APPROXIMATE LOCATION OF ECOTOURISM SITES

WITHIN DISTRICTs

116
PLATE 1-MILLENNIUM PARK

PLATE 2-JABI LAKE/RESORT

117
 PLATE 3-CHILDREN’S PARK AND ZOO

PLATE 4-AREA 1 PARK (TREASURE ISLAND)

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 CHAPTER FOUR

4.0 RESULTSAND DISCUSSION

4.1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter presents the findings in the course of this study and

research work. Research result and data obtained is presently in tables

and percentage and explanation follow thereafter. Among the issues

addressed in the chapter are:

 The level of awareness and understanding of residents and Tourist

in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja about ecotourism and

environmental conservation

 The peoples' perception and attitude towards ecotourism and

identifying various ecological sites suitable for ecotourism

4.2 SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS OF RESPONDENTS

survey on sex pattern and distribution of respondents shows that there

are more female than males in various ecotourism sites visited. They

were more in all four locations selected. Overall they constitute about

119
57.5% respondent while the remaining 42.5% were male. From my

personal observation most respondents were couples who came with

their children for relaxations.

Table 4.1 Sex Distribution for Respondents

SITE
SEX A B C D TOTAL PERCENTAGE
FEMAL 28 27 29 31 115 57.5%
E
MALE 22 23 21 19 85 42.5%
TOTAL 50 50 50 50 200 100%
Source: Questionnaire survey

The age distribution shows that majority of respondent fall within the

age bracket of 26-40 years are they jointly account for 64.5% of

respondent. The age bracket between 26-30 years had 57 respondent

representing 28.5%. while the age bracket between 31-40 had 72

respondents representing 36% of total number of respondents.

Respondents whose age group fall within the very active age seen to

120
engage more in tourism activities in the location. The relatively elderly

from 50 years and above are small in number as only 12 respondents

representing just 6 percent of total respondents were available.

Table 4.2: age pattern of Respondents

Age group Number of Percentage

respondent
21-25 30 15%
26-30 57 28.5%
31-40 72 36%
41-50 29 14.5%
50 above 12 6.6%
Total 200 100%
Source: Questionnaire survey

Table 4.3: Educational Qualification of Respondent

Qualification Number of Percentage

respondent
Primary Nil 0%
Post 53 26.5%
Primary/Secondary
Post Secondary/ 147 73.5%
Tertiary
Total 200 100%
Source: Questionnaire survey

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From the survey, only educated persons within the FCT as reflected in

educational status of respondents engage in tourism. 127 respondents

which is 61.5% have acquired education above secondary school level.

While the remaining 36.5% acquire education above primary school.

Literacy level could therefore be a factor in the level of participation in

ecotourism and tourism generally. Also a large number of respondents

within post primary education (secondary) are women.

The survey also revealed that 194 respondents representing 97% of total

respondents are Nigerians while 6 respondents which only 3% were non

Nigerians. On place of residence, 100% of respondents reside within the

city center, Abuja. The inference that can be drawn from these result is

that ecotourism and indeed the boarder tourism sector in terms of

patronage is still hugely "Domestic".

4.3 AWARENESS OF ECOTOURISM

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The responses received indicate 100% awareness about Tourism

however only 23% claim to know what ecotourism all is about 77% of

respondents do not know or cannot distinguish ecotourism from the

general board tourism.

The electronic media (T.V and Radio) is the medium through which

most respondents got awareness and enlightenment about ecotourism

generally, T.V and radio account for 65% of the medium through which

people get awareness about ecotourism. Other medium as newspapers,

bill board, government agencies and non government agencies (NGOs)

all jointly account for the remaining 35%

Table 4.4: Source of Awareness About Tourism Issues

Medium of Respondents Percentage

awareness
T.V 72 36%
Radio 52 28.5%
Newspaper 26 13%
Bill boards 33 16.5%
Government agencies 10 5%
NGOs 2 1%
Total 200 100%

Source: Questionnaire survey

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4.4 PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE

The survey conducted reviews that huge number of respondents agree

that tourism can negatively affect the environment 143 respondent

representing 71% agree that tourism can the environment negatively.

While 57 respondents representing 28% did not agree that tourism can

affect the environment.

Also. All 143 respondents who agree that tourism can regularly affect

the environment unanimously believe that the environment especially

that which on the ecological sites for tourism and ecotourism rests on

should be conserved and promoted

However as shown in table iv 74.8% believe that the responsibility of

protecting the environment in and around the tourism site is the sole

responsibility of the managers and proper of such tourist centre. Only

14% of respondent believe that tourists should help or assist to

conserving the environment in and around the tourist sites.

Table 4.5 Perception of Whose Responsibility is to Protect the

Tourist Sites

124
Who should protect Number of Percentage
environment around respondents
tourist sites
Tourists 20 14%
Managers/ owners 107 74.8%
Volunteers, NGOs 16 11.2%
Total 143 100%
Source: Questionnaire survey

The respondent were also asked question on their willingness and

conditions under which respondent are ready to protect and conserve

environment within and around tourist site. The responses received

indicate that 167% respondents which is 83.5% are willing to assist in

protecting the environment while 33 respondents which is 16.5% are not

ready to assist in protecting and conserving the environment around the

another issue on which the respondent were asked question is the

condition under which the respondents will offer to assist in protection

and preservation of ecotourism sites. The responses received in this

regard are shown in table 4.7

Table 4.6: The Conditions under which the Respondent will Protect

the Sites

125
Conditions Responde Percentage
nts
When paid to 20 11.97%
As volunteer 43 25.75%
Donating money 104 62.28%
Adoption of
plants/animals
Planting trees/flowers
Total 200 100%

Source: Questionnaire survey

From the data obtainedmost respondents who wish to assist in protecting

or conserve the environment within and around the various ecotourism

location, only want to do so passively. They are ready to contribute

money towards conservation. The result shows 167 respondents

representing 62.28% willing to contribute money to support

conservation. 43 respondents representing 25.75% are willing to serve as

volunteers in conserving the environment around the sites.

These volunteers are the only set of persons really desirous of actively

and directly participating in conserving the environment. The remaining

11.97% of the respondents said they will participate in conversing the

environment if they were paid to do so.

126
Awareness about the existence of various ecotourism was unanimous as

there was 100% respondent knowledge about locations listed. These

include the millennium park, Jabi/Lake resort, Abuja Zoological garden.

However on the locations in which they are interested in, the millennium

park top the list, as own half of the respondents said they were interested

in the millennium park. Most of the respondent who though were in

other ecotourism location said millennium park at the time of

administration of Questionnaire still said they were more interested in

the millennium park

Table 4.7: Respondent Preference on Ecotourism Sites

Site of interest Number of Percentag

Respondents e
Jabi lake/resort 35 17.5%
Millennium park 109 54.5%
Abuja zoological 46 23%
garden
Aso rocks 10 5%
Total 200 100%

Source: Questionnaire survey

127
As can be observed in table 4.8 100 respondent representing 54.5% of

total respondents are interested in the millennium park 23% are

interested in the Abuja zoological garden, 17.5% are interested in Jabi

Lake and Resort while only 5% are interested in the Aso Rocks. The

possible reason why more people are interested in the millennium park

could be the publicity it often gets from electronic media during festive

periods as events there are always covered and shown on television.

While the possible reason people patronize other location despite their

preference for millennium park could proximity to residences.

Table 4.8: Reasons for Respondents Interest in the Various

Ecotourism Sites

Reason for interest Number of Percentag

Respondents e
Leisure /relaxation 161 80.5%
Conservation/ 5 2.5%
protecting
environment
Education/ Excursion 34 17%

Source: Questionnaire survey

128
From survey conducted, conservation and protection of ecotourism sites

ranks least as reasons for interest in visit and patronage of ecotourism

sites, as just only 5 respondents which 2.5% claimed they were in the

parks for conservation purposes 35 respondents representing 17.5% said

they were visiting the parks for educational/ excursion purposes. 160

respondents representing 80.5% of total survey sample were in the park

for leisure and relaxation. This shows that tourist and indeed the general

populace need to be sensitized about ecotourism as a conservation tool

for the environment.

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 CHAPTER FIVE

5.0 SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

5.1 SUMMARY

Tourism activities of which ecotourism are a very important sector, often

shapes and effects the environment. Poor conceived and poorly planned

tourism development can erode the very qualities of the natural

environment that attracts visitors. Ecotourism has therefore been

identified as the most sustainable kind of tourism that can conserve the

environment, conserve wildlife, vegetation while as the same time

yielding revenues and generating jobs.

Ecotourism as an activity is known to have made inroads more in the

markets of developing countries with abundant variety of physical

attractions and natural qualities, while half of the people who engage in

tourism, do so in developing countries.

Nigeria whose administrative capital, Abuja is being used as case study

for this research is a country in need if alternative revenue source aside,

oil. With this crisis in the Niger-Delta region, environmental pollution

130
and degradation that accompanies oil exploration tourism especially

ecotourism which seeks to conserve the environment which at the same

yielding revenue is highly recommended.

Tourism growth hinges on a number of delicate parameters which are

mostly qualitative in nature. Among these are level of education, social

professional structure of the local people, standard of living, attitude and

perception of people. Most critical to the success ecotourism is the

perception and attitude of people. These factors must therefore be

considered, in planning and development of ecotourism.

In Nigeria, ecotourism sector still operates as an integral part of the

broad tourism sector. The Nigerian Government in her quest to diversity

her economy, has decided to develop non-oil sector of the economy, of

which tourism is one of them.

It has developed a tourism master plan by putting in a place National

Tourism Policy, establishment of agencies as the National tourism

Development Council, (NTDC) and the national institute for hospitality

and tourism (NIHOTOUR) for training of manpower for the industry.

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Most recently introduction of the annual Abuja Carnival is an attempt to

boost tourism development in Nigeria. However, the industry in Nigeria

is still faced with a lot of problems which include low level demand,

dearth of data and statistics on tourism facilities and services, corruption,

among others.

In Abuja FCT, over the last five years, there have been some deliberate

efforts by the territory's administration to embark on some corrective

measures in urban development process in order to restore in masterplan

of the territory's main city, the Abuja Federal Capital city (FCC). This

restoration, which was necessitated by series of abuses the masterplan

was subjected to, involved among other things the

restoration/development of areas designated as 'green areas' in the

masterplan. To reconcile the conflict between the need to have spaces

for human usage and also for nature preservation, such spaces were

largely redeveloped into sites for various activities that fall within the

realm of ecotourism. For such sites to be put into the usage them are noe

being converted into, there is definitely need for the people to not only

132
be aware about the objectives of their development, but to also have

favorable disposition towards them. There are hence the need for us to

know the perception and attitude of the people towards the development

of ecotourism sites in the territory and the need for this constitutes the

problem of research interest to this study.

This study was initiated with the central aim of assessing people's

perception and attitude towards the development of ecotourism in the

federal capital city FCC), Abuja. The objectives of this research study

are to (i) identify the various ecological sites and their suitability foe

ecotourism in the study area (ii) examine people's perception and

attitudes towards ecotourism, and (iii) assess the level of awareness and

understanding of residents/ tourists about the ecotourism and

environmental conservation.

To realize these working objectives, the main sites redeveloped for

ecotourism activities in the city were identified and adopted as the

sampling units for the study. These locations include the Area 1

zoological park (Treasure Island [Garki District]). Abuja zoological

133
park, and Garden (Asokoro District), millennium Park (Central Area

district) and Jabi lakes and resort (Jabi District). Within every location, a

questionnaire was administered to 50 randomly selected respondents. To

ensure effective distribution and administration of questionnaires to

respondents. The contents of the questionnaires were analyzed first by

coding and then by the use of simple descriptive statistics (mean and

percentages).

5.2 CONCLUSION

the results obtained in this study are supportive of the following

conclusions.

a. There is high awareness about tourism

b. There is still very low knowledge about ecotourism as most

people cannot distinguish ecotourism from tourism

c. Ecotourism and tourism can negatively affect the environment

d. Tourists are not willing to participate in protecting and conserving

the environment (Flora and fauna) around various tourist

134
 locations as they believe that it is the responsibility of the

managers/ owners of such locations to do so.

e. There is dearth of foreign patronage as most people who

patronize the tourist destinations are largely Nigeria. Thus

foreigners from whom the 'tourist dollars' is expected to come

from do not patronize these sites for now.

f. Patronage of tourist destinations is hugely 'domestic' and

localized as virtually all visitors reside within Abuja.

g. The electronic media is the most potent means to enlighten people

about ecotourism and tourism

h. Educational status i.e level of educational attainment is a factor in

participating in ecotourism as only educated people engage in

tourism. Patronage seems to increase with higher levels of

education.

i. The very active age group of the population of ages between 21-

50 years do participate more in tourism.

j. There is more female patronage of tourist destinations than males.

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5.3 RECOMMENDATION

In line with conclusions reached and other information gathered about

ecotourism in the course of this research, the following

recommendations are made.

i. Government agencies in charge of tourism sector, tour operators

and other stakeholders should take up the challenge of moving the

tourist from current minimal “passive” status to a more “active”

contributor to the sustainability of eco-attractions.

ii. Unlike mega tourism with planned built walled in complexes,

ecotourism is nature based. Abuja i.e. the FCT today still has vast

natural land, vegetation and landscapes very suitable for

ecotourism. These locations like Aso-Bwari are located outside the

city center and a few minutes’ drive from the city. I would

recommend that ecotourism infrastructure and facilities be

developed within these areas that still retain its natural status.

Within these areas, tourist both local and foreigners can have a feel

136
 of nature and a reminder of how the Abuja city which has now

become a ‘jungle of concrete’ used to be before development.

iii. Most of the eco-attraction sites In Abuja at present do not have

accommodation facilities. In future planning and development of

ecotourism infrastructure, provision should be made for lodging

facilities. Ecolodge which is a nature-based lodging facility is

recommended. With these, residents of the city can embark on

short holidays and weekends outside the hustle and bustle of the

city.

iv. Adoption of interpretation techniques both oral and tangible is

recommended.

v. Tangible interpretation tools like handbills, booklets detailing the

various eco-attraction sites in Abuja should be distributed to

visitors at entre-points like the airport by officials by officials of

NTDC, to stimulate and arouse the interest of visitors to wanting to

visit this site.

vi. Visitors and tourists at entrance to parks should be enlightened

orally and through handbills on the need to protect the flora fauna
137
 and entire environment of the parks and tourist centers they visit.

They should also be urged to protect the environment in general.

vii. Ecotourism is known to expand with increase in parks. Abuja in

recent times has witnessed the creation of new parks and

reclamation of green areas. A department of park and recreation

was even created. This should be sustained and parks properly

managed and maintained.

viii. Appropriately trained personnel in tourism should be employed by

the authorities to manage the various tourist site and man the

various organs of tourism agencies. Those already working in these

agencies should be retrained to acquire necessary skills in tourism

management.

ix. Eco tourism has its unique characteristics principles and mode of

operations I would recommend that in planning and formulation of

policies for broad tourism industry, the various components and

sectors should be separated and planned for differently as mode of

operation often differ from one sector to another.

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 x. Today there exists clubs, schools, and non-governmental

organization all claiming to champion the course tourism. Their

activities are largely un-coordinated and I would suggest that

dedicated unit within the tourism board be created to monitor, co-

ordinate and harness inputs from these organization and clubs.

xi. The electronic media i.e. T.V. and radio should be major medium

through which the public should be enlightened and sensitized

about the benefits derivable from holidaying, relaxing and

recreation.

xii. The designation of a relatively virgin area within the federal capital

territory as an ‘Eco museum’ is recommended. An entire village on

the outskirts of city, with its people, culture, vegetation, and which

has a scintillating landscape, can be chosen for this purpose. The

Ushafa Village in Bwari Area Council is suggested.

xiii. Adequate, security should be put in place both within and outside

the various ecotourism destinations. This is to ensure the safety of

the lives and properties of tourists both local and foreign. Security

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 is very important for image of the country and sustenance of

patronage especially that of foreigners.

xiv. Ecotourism is a vast area of study both for academic research and

for planning and formulation of tourism policies. As an emerging

filed, new information come up every day, fresh practice direction

emerges, and these needs to researched into. I therefore strongly

recommend further research both at undergraduate and post

graduate levels into ecotourism

Reference

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Blangy, S. and Elpher-Wood, M. (1992) Developing and implementing

ecotourism guidelines for wild lands and neighing communities. The
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Cater, E. (1994). In Cater, E., and G. Lowman: Ecotourism in third
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Caballos- Lescurain, H. (1990) Tourism, ecotourisms and protected
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Chokor, B. (ed)(1993): Environment and Tourism in
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ecotourist: Adelaide, Australia: down to Earth planning for an out-of-
the-ordinary industry, presented at the South Australian Ecotourism
Forum
Eagles, P.F.J., Ballatine, J.L. and Fennell, D.A. (1992) Marketing to the
ecotourist: case studies from Kenya and Costa Rica. Paper presented at
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Hawkins D.E (1994) Ecotourism Opportunity for developing countries
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Peter Lang, New york
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www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/abuja

APPENDIX

Sample of Questionnaire Survey

Dear Respondent

144
I am a student of the National Institute of Town Planners. I am

undertaking a project on ecotourism and challenges of development in

the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

You are kindly requested, therefore, to respond to the questions asked

hereunder by either ticking the right option or providing answers on the

spaces provided.

All responses received shall be treated with utmost confidentiality and

used purely for research purposes only.

Thank you.

Sincerely

M.E.O. Imuse

SECTION A: Socio-economic Profile

145
1. Name of location………………………………………

2. Age:

a. 21-25 ( ) b. 26-30 ( ) c. 31-40 ( ) d. 41-52 ( ) e. 51 – above ( )

3. Sex:

a. Male ( ) b. Female ( )

4. Marital Status:

a. Single ( ) b. Married ( ) c. Divorce ( ) e. Widow/Widower ( )

5. Highest Educational level:

a. Primary level ( ) b. Post Primary ( ) c. Post Secondary level ( )

d. Qur’anic ( ) e. Theological ( ) f. None of the above ( )

5. Income level:

a. Less than N50,000.00 per annum ( )

b. Above N50,000.00 but less than N100,000.00 per annum ( )

c. Above N100,000.00 per annum but less than N200,000.00 ( )

d. Above N200,000.00 per annum but less than N500,000.00 ( )

e. Above N500,000 per annum

6. Tribe
146
Please specify _____________________

7. Nationality:

a. Nigerian ( ) b. Non-Nigerian ( )

8. Occupation

Main Additional

a. Farming () ()

b. Civil service () ()

c. Trading/Commerce () ()

d. Poultry () ()

e. Cattle rearing () ()

f. Banking () ()

g. Others, please specify___________________

9. Place of birth.

10. Place of Residence

Section B: Perception and attitude

1. Do you know what tourism is all about?

147
 Yes ( ) No ( )

2. Do you know what ecotourism is all about?

Yes ( ) No ( )

3. Through which medium/means did you know about tourism?

a. TV ( ) radio ( ) newspapers ( ) billboards ( )

b. Friends/individuals ( ) govt. agencies ( ) NGOs’ ( )

c. Others, please specify ______________

4. Do you take part in tourism activities now?

Yes ( ) No ( )

5. If yes, how many times in a year:

a. Once a week ( ) b. once a month ( ) c. every three months ( )

d. Every six months ( ) once a year ( )

6. If no, have you taken part in it before?

a. Yes ( ) b. No ( )

7. If you no longer take part in tourism now, give reason:

148
 a. Is now expensive ( ) b. Lack of tourist sites around ( )

b. Tourist sites no longer attractive ( ) d. Tourist operators now

offer poor services ( )

c. Security problem ( )

d. Others, please specify________________

8. Do you agree that tourism can negatively affect the environment?

a. Yes ( ) b. No ( )

9. If yes, in what ways?

a. Tourist can trample on plant and destroy them ( )

b. Tourist can poach ( )

c. Tourists can negatively influence local culture ( )

d. Tourist can add to waste problem ( )

e. Others, please specify _______________________

10. If tourism negatively affects the environment, do you believe that

the environment around tourist sites should be protected?

149
 a. Yes ( ) b. No ( )

11. If yes, who do you think should be responsible for such protection?

a. Tourists ( ) b. Tourism managers ( ) c. Special people are required

( )

d. Volunteers ( ) e. CBOs ( ) f. NGOs ( ) g. Charity organizations ( )

12. Do you agree that there is a difference between tourism and

ecotourism?

a. Yes ( ) b. No ( )

13. If no, state why:

a. They are the same ( )

b. Tourism and environmental conservation are opposite one another

( )

c. Don’t know

150
14. If you are asked to assist in conserving the environment around the

tourist sites you visit, will you agree:

a. Yes ( ) b. No ( )

15. If yes, under which condition?

a. Only if I am paid

b. Can offer free services as a volunteer

c. Donating money for the exercise

d. Planting trees

e. Planting flowers

f. Maintaining flowers

g. Maintain of animals

h. Maintaining adopted tree(s)

i. Others, please specify?

16. Which of the following tourism sites in Abuja are you aware of

and interested in?

Site aware of interested in

a. Jabi lake/resort ( ) ( )
151
b. Millennium park ( ) ( )

c. Abuja zoological gardens ( ) ( )

d. Aso rocks ( ) ( )

e. Green parks ( ) ( )

17. Which of the following best explains why you are interested in the

sites.

a. Leisure/recreation/relaxation ( ) b. Conservation ( )

c. Restoration ( ) d. Education/excursion ( )

e. Protecting the environment ( )

18. How do you describe your relationship with the tourist sites you

are interested in?

a. The sites are just for me to visit ( )

b. I need to ensure development/restoration of the sites ( )

c. Conservation of the sites is owner’s business ( )

d. I need to pay for conservation of the sites ( )

152
19. As a tourist you do not engage in protection and conservation of

tourist sites, what is responsible for this:

a. No one encourages me to do so ( )

b. I do not know how to conserve site ( )

c. Protection of sites is govt. business ( )

d. Operators should be responsible for protection/conservation of

sites ( )

153