The Comparison about the Sustainable Tourism Policies and Its Implementation in Bolivia and the Netherlands

“Tourism in International Relations”
Lecture : Drs Usmar Salam MIS
Nafisah Ratanti Wulandari 07/250207/SP/21900


The Comparison about the Sustainable Tourism Policies and Its Implementation in Bolivia and the Netherlands


Tourism, I may say, is the fastest growing sector of the global economy. Because of the rapidly growth of this industry, the uncontrolled growth could effect negative results, such as problems of social, cultural, and environmental. The United Nations, as an organization which trying to controlled any predicament on this earth, attempt to make a policy that could reduce and control the problems which we’re having that associated with tourism. United Nations, finally make a real effort to fight the problems. International governments, activist groups, tourism industry and trade unions gathered altogether to talk about the Sustainable Development of Tourism. So far, the UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution on sustainable tourism as part of its ‘Program for the further implementation of Agenda 21', the action program adopted at the Rio Earth Summit. This resolution acknowledges the need to consider further the importance of tourism in the context of Agenda 21. And according the World Tourism Organization, “Sustainable tourism development meets the needs of the present tourists and host regions while protecting and enhancing the opportunity for the future. It is envisaged as leading to the management of all resources in such a way that economic, social and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled, while maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity and life support systems.”
So what the world really has been up to about the urgency of this sustainable development of tourism? It’s because the world needs a real help. A help which can save the world from global warming, the danger of unlimited cultural exchange and other threats. Many tourism developers with lots of money to spend set to gain access to the protected areas to make them tourism destinations. And that’s the point of sustainable tourism development is fighting for. The ideal sustainable tourism should make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute a key element in tourism development, maintaining essential ecological processes and helping to conserve natural heritage and biodiversity. It also has to be demonstrate respect for host communities while contributing to the conservation of their built and living cultural expressions.
And last but not least, to ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning opportunities and social services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation. Those principles of sustainable tourism can be understood as a realization of, and reaction to, failures associated with typical mass-based approaches to tourism that we’re facing nowadays.
Bolivia and Netherlands, are different if we classify them into a classification of development. Bolivia, classified as a developing country, on the other hand, Netherlands, as we all know, is definitely a developed country. The writer’s sure those two countries have different implementation and its own style of sustainable tourism development’s meaning. I would like to make a comparation about the concept and the real implementation that has been done by the two countries.
Bolivia, though still shoulders its label as one of the poorest and least developed countries in Latin America, it already promoted environmental protection and awareness towards its efforts sustainable tourism development. Tourism plays a major big role in the economy of Bolivia. There are some tourist attractions that I bet we all have known them before. To name a few, I would say Amazon River, Lake Titicaca, Inca Ruins and Mount Andes. Inca Ruins were designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2000. Though Bolivia has great potential, the potent is reduced because of bad accessibility, constricted infrastructure and the often low standard of accommodation. So, although Bolivia can offer a wide range of activities to visitors, including adventure, ecological, archaeological, cultural and hunting trips, successive governments have failed to fully exploit the economic potential of these attractions, unfortunately. The national government and NGO’s around Bolivia are working hard to pay attention to this issue. Government of Bolivia is in close cooperation with National Chamber of Commerce Bolivia, the Vice Minister of Tourism and local consultants to work with. One of their methods is to improve the quality of services. Setting up an educational program for all is a must. All participating groups, including tour guides, museum employees and restaurant or hotel staff can participate in these educational courses. The government also uses informational events on tourism to broaden public interest, promoting regional sites through exhibitions, a website and advertising campaigns. There is also a tourism project that provides 90 percents of funding for projects aiming at improving the conditions of local communities to receive tourism in their areas.
Another real implementation of sustainable tourism in Bolivia is the development of the Lake Titilaca. This action includes to facilitate local activities that support tourism development and cultural protection in the communities surrounding the Lake, and to improve basic water and sanitation services. The project of the development of Lake Titilaca has three main components, first is to support Tourism Development and Cultural Protection, which will support activities that promote quality of life, strengthen cultural identity, provide critical tourism infrastructure, and improve economic development for local communities within the Lake Titicaca Basin, second is Basic Services, which will facilitate access to improved services and infrastructure in prioritized municipalities and communities within the Lake Basin through the Vice Ministry of Tourism and Basic Services; and last, Institutional Strengthening and Project Management, which will enhance the land-use planning and management capacity of municipalities within the Lake Titicaca Basin through the municipal strategic and land-use plans. The component will also enhance the development and annual updating of technical and social data - the Lake's water quality and natural habitat, as well as quality of life indicators for the communities surrounding the Lake. This will be supported through the creation of an annual "State of the Lake" Report. Bolivia, at this mean time, still needs to elaborate certification system for sustainable tourism adapted to Bolivian culture and standards. And of course, needs to make a realization of the accreditation and certification.
After talking about tourism in Bolivia, this is the time to make a report about tourism in Netherlands. Tourism in The Netherlands, a country that located in the west of Europe, is really important. Nowadays, tourism makes up about 4 percents of The Netherlands’ Gross Domestic Product. 6,5 percents of it citizens work at tourism sector. The growth and importance of tourism in The Netherlands differ per region. Contribution to the local economy is strongest in the Provinces of North – Holland (Amsterdam included), Zeeland, Limburg and Drenthe. The smallest contribution is between Utrecht and Flevoland. Despite this fact that tourism has a major role in this country, tourism has a subordinate position in Dutch national politics and policies. There’s no Ministry or Department of Tourism over there.
The Dutch government, until 2006, has not yet produced a sustainable tourism policy. It has been planning to do so from the year 2003. At that point, sustainable tourism policy is need to make a joint vision and action program towards tourism. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Security were responsible to make this policy. But in the implementation, initiatives that taken to make the tourism development sustained are taken by NGO’s in cooperation with private sector organizations. The main reason for this lack of governmental interference is a lack of market demand and societal pressure for sustainable tourism, a lack of a clear perception about the problem that we face.
However, there are number of policies that do have contribution to sustainable tourism. The Dutch spatial planning system in principle still protects against undesirable development; even though the desirability of developments is still have to be questioned. For example, expansion of the biggest theme park in the Netherlands, De Effeling, has been blocked by nature conservation organizations, making use of the legal procedures offered by the Netherlands’ Spatial Planning Act and environmental laws.
To conclude the review about the Dutch policies about sustainable tourism, writer thinks that The Netherlands lacks a specific sustainable tourism policy. Maybe because it has not been specified which one of the ministry that should have been took care of. Specific attention for tourism at the national level become fragmented and dispersed over various Ministries. The tourism market and the civil society in The Netherlands are also have responsibilities to make sustainable tourism in the Netherlands doesn’t stay utopian. A real agenda is also need so that a clear vision and clear goals can be reached.
On the other hand, Bolivia, as a least developed country in South America showed a great effort to make it tourism more sustain. We have to appreciate its effort towards this sustainable tourism development issue. It’s not an easy thing, for Bolivia, as a poor country, to make any policies that concerns to tourism issues while the country still needs to take care of many other things that might more urgent. Based on my analysis, those two countries need a new such certification system adapted to international standard. The main objective to do so is to support the tourism industry and to improve the quality of its services, the preservation of the natural and cultural environment as well as competitiveness within the international market for environmentally responsible tourism.