Comparing Sustainable Tourism Development of France and India

Tourism in International Relations
Lecture: Drs. Usmar Salam MIS
Aulia Aryotejo
07/254319/SP/22271
International Relations


Comparing Sustainable Tourism Development of France and India

What is Sustainable Tourism Development?
As we know, Sustainable Development is a kind of plan that has been used by countries to develop every sector of their needs. This concept has been used to overcome their lack of awareness in environmental issues when developing the country. Thus, in 1987, the World Commission on Development and Environment introducing this concept to cover these problems. This concept was being introduced at the end of 1980’s because the awareness of people around the world towards the changing in environment issues was scaled up. People have become more aware with environment and its impact for humanity in this time of year. Experts in many ways have defined sustainable development itself. But it is commonly defined in this way: sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (as been said in Tjokrowinoto, 1995: 4). So if countries wanted to develop themselves, they have to think about the impact of their work toward environment. With these responsiveness, hopefully it will bring wealth to the next generations.
This sustainability development concept has also bought into the tourism sector. Sustainable Tourism Development, as they called it, have been defined by the World Tourism Organization as tourism which leads to management of all resources in such a way that economic, social and aesthetic needs can be filled while maintaining cultural integrity, essentials ecological processes, biological diversity and life support systems. Over the last decade, sets of principles had been developed to make this concept works. These principles identify the four-pillars of sustainable tourism as economic, ecological, cultural and community sustainability. There are various of guidelines for each of these pillars. They are:
Economic sustainability - that is profitable in both the immediate and long term

1.Form partnerships throughout the entire supply chain from micro-sized local businesses to multinational organizations.
2.Use internationally approved and reviewed guidelines for training and certification
3.Promote among clients an ethical and environmentally conscious behavior
4.Diversify the products by developing a wide range of tourist activities
5.Contribute some of the income generated to assist in training, ethical marketing and product development
6.Provide financial incentives for businesses to adopt sustainability principles

Ecological sustainability - development that is compatible with the maintenance of essential ecological processes, biological diversity and biological resources

1.Codes of practice should be established for tourism at all levels
2.Guidelines for tourism operations, impact assessment and monitoring of cumulative impacts should be established
3.Formulate national, regional and local tourism policies and development strategies that are consistent with overall objectives of sustainable development
4.Institute baseline environmental impact assessment studies
5.Ensure that the design, planning, development and operation of facilities incorporate sustainability principles
6.Ensure tourism in protected areas, such as national parks, is incorporated into and subject to sound management plans
7.Monitor and conduct research on the actual impacts of tourism
8.Identify acceptable behavior among tourists
9.Promote responsible tourism behavior

Cultural sustainability - increase people's control over their lives and is compatible with the culture and values of those affected and strengthens the community identity

1.Tourism should be initiated with the help of broad based community input
2.Education and training programs to improve and manage heritage and natural resources should be established
3.Conserve cultural diversity
4.Respect land and property rights of traditional inhabitants
5.Guarantee the protection of nature, local and the indigenous cultures and especially traditional knowledge
6.Work actively with indigenous leaders and minority groups to insure that indigenous cultures and communities are depicted accurately and with respect.
7.Strengthen, nurture and encourage the community's ability to maintain and use traditional skills.
8.Educate tourists about desirable and acceptable behavior
9.Educate the tourism industry about desirable and acceptable behavior

Local sustainability - that is designed to benefit local communities and generate/retain income in those communities

1.The community should maintain control over tourism development
2.Tourism should provide quality employment to community residents
3.Encourage businesses to minimize negative effects on local communities and contribute positively to them
4.Ensure an equitable distribution of financial benefits throughout the entire supply chain
5.Provide financial incentives for local businesses to enter tourism
6.Improve local human resource capacity

In this blog, I would like to compare about how well India and France has applied the concept of Sustainable Tourism Development. Why did I choose these two because its reputation in global tourism. It also has differentiation in their each backgrounds. France is a developed nation meanwhile India is a developing nation. These great differences also come with how they manage their tourism.

India
India is probably the next to be famous tourist destination in the world. When the global tourism revenue started to decrease 0.4% in 2009, India manage to increase its tourism revenue up to 6.5%. It proves that they are serious to make revenue from this sector. Their main “secret-weapon” to attract tourist from around the globe is their diversity of culture and tradition. India itself has been divided into some regions to visit; they’re North India, South India, East India, and West India. But, the most wanted place to visit by the tourist relies on the region of North and South India because there’s so many destinations located on those two. In the north, whom people called it the magical land, has become one of the favorite place to visit because the Taj Mahal is located here. The South Land also offers an incredibly beautiful scene because three oceans surround it.
As the increase of tourist arrivals since 2002, India has developed the facility that supports it. India combined the Sustainability Tourism Development concept with the Concept of Meeting, Incentives, Collaboration, and Exhibition (we often say it as MICE). It focused on three sectors of development; medical, cultural, and spiritual. The medical sector can be developed because India has a low-cost and high-quality standard of medical sector that can attract patient from any other part of the world whose have very high cost so they can enjoy their holiday meanwhile having treatment from the international-quality hospitals. In cultural sector, because of its customs Indian still hold their traditions very faithfully. It showed by many women who still wear their traditional clothes. Their traditional dance is also showed in particular place around India even in the new modern way such as in the movie. The spiritual sector also being developed because their relations with the cultural sector. Most of the cultural destinations in India have been related with religion. One of the example is Gangga river which by Indian (the hindus especially) considered sacred. The government use this to attract tourist by holding a festival there.

France
France has many great tourist destinations to visit so no wonder if it makes them as the most-wanted place to visit. The mass number of visitors also makes them the number one tourist destination in the world. Well, being number one also gives a big impact to the country in many sectors such as; environment, socio-cultural, and economic. This situation encourages the French government to implement the Sustainable Tourism Development to save those problems. Their goal is clear, make the tourist happy visiting France meanwhile maintaining their environment sector so do the rest of the sectors.
If we look at that situation, it also make us no wonder if the Country has been choose to be one of the initiator from 7 countries in the field The Marrakech Process on Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) in 2002 besides Sweden, Great Britain, Finland, and three other countries. These countries responsible for encouraging the implementation of SCP action that promotes sustainable tourism through the development tools support, pilot projects and practices in other countries. Where the focus of SCP is the problem of climate change, biodiversity, cultural and natural heritage, and regional development.
France has been implemented the Sustainable Tourism Development since 2000, they focused on four areas to develop: ecological, cultural, economical, and the empowerment of local community. In the ecological sector, the French government creating a French environment-friendly transportation and non-exploitation resources that cannot be renewed. It has been done according to the principles of sustainable development. France is also maintaining their natural tourism such as beaches, mountains, and rural tourism. In cultural sector, France is well known as a country that loves their very own culture. So, no wonder if we couldn’t easily speak English to French people because they’re honored the usage of their own language. Because of this, the government covered it with dispatching some kind of French language school that willingly teaching the tourist. The government also maintains their local culture such as held some traditional festivals and maintaining their historical buildings such as museums and churches. In economics, French government encouraging the rural tourism, which involves farmers and the villagers to maximize their assets, and adding an additional income for them. In Local sector, the government encourage the local people to become a seller of souvenir or become workers in this sector.

Conclusions
Those two variables that I’d mentioned above has implemented Sustainable Tourism Development very well. However, this implementation doesn’t mean that there weren’t obstacle that disturbs it. As we can see, India is always shadowed by the poverty that still exists in this one billion people citizen. Meanwhile France is disturbed by the lack of villager-awareness of the potential that hidden in rural community so the government must giving assistance and supervision for the community. Despite of those problems, they must to keep working on the concept if thy want to push their limit in this global crisis world





Reference:
1.Dr. Bob McKercher. Presentation to the National Seminar on Sustainable tourism Development Bishkek, Kyrgystan. SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT – GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT. , 2003.
2.Salam, Usmar. 2006. Kumpulan Materi Mata Kuliah Pariwisata dalam Hubungan Internasional. UGM. Yogyakarta
3.Ministry of Tourism Government of India. Annual Report (2007-2008).
4.http://www.world-tourism.org
5.http://esa.un.org.
6.http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr