The Implementations of Sustainable Tourism Development in South Africa and Madagascar : Same Region, Different Progress of Implementation

Author :
PILAR AYU PARADEWI
07/250213/SP/21902
International Relations

Subject : Tourism in International Relations
Lecturer : Usmar Salam, M. IS

The Implementations of Sustainable Tourism Development in South Africa and Madagascar : Same Region, Different Progress of Implementation

The environmental and sustainable development issues has become emerging since the late of 20th century. It was about by the decade of 1990s. This is definitely because in the past time the government ignored the values of sustainability, environmental awareness, and several things that related and got the impacts by the developments. For example, people that live around the location of development, local culture, and so on.

One of the most spotlighted sectors by the implementation of sustainable development
is tourism. In almost every country in this entire world, tourism is always becoming a vital part that supports their livelihood. It is because tourism is always profitable to keep their economic continuity running. Even more, the tourism is one of a sector that quite resisting since the wave of global financial crisis has been urgent in this world, while another sector is pharmacy or medicine. Unfortunately in fact, by the importance and the worth of tourism for the countries, the awareness of the investor or the operator of tourism destinations about sustainability values had been really bad. This fact has made serious damage in several segments that surround the location of tourism destinations, such as environment, local culture, and local community empowerment. Because of that, since the earth summit had been held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 and the sustainable development implementations have been declared, sustainable development conception has become almost every countries’ common concern. The idea and conception of that sustainable development was formulated as the balancing way out for the social and environmental damage and the economic benefit that’s got by the tourism destination operated.

Sustainability development concepts themselves have four main concerns. They are economic sustainability, cultural sustainability, local sustainability, and cultural sustainability. First is economic sustainability. This sector means that tourism destinations that is developed should be economically prosperous either for short-term or long-term. In practically, the sustainable cooperation among the stakeholders is also necessary, such as the investors, the operators, and the people that live around the location. Those people should be empowered for enhancing the tourism destinations attractions. For example, by giving them the chance to sell some stuffs or souvenir or shopping center or by letting them to supply the necessaries of the tourism destinations such as rice and vegetable to eat or beverages to drink. Besides that, the investor should donate their revenue to give incentive for promoting the implementations of sustainable development. The purpose is to make the sustainable development correctly implemented.

The second is cultural sustainability. In running the tourism destination, the officials often ignore the local cultures that actually have always been upheld by the local people. This ignorance may cause unwanted things that actually could corrupt the development process, especially for the local people. That’s why sustainable development should be implemented, and tourism is looked forward to be more respectful to the local cultures. The officials should cooperate with local people to conserve the local cultures and heritages, and politely demand the tourists to adjust with it. That simple approach may prevent the clash between the local people and local culture, and the tourists.

The third is local sustainability. This means that the officials should involve local people/communities in the operation of tourism destination. It also means that there should be the burden sharing among the investor and the local people. The ways of it are by giving them the opportunities and space to get involved in planning, designing, maintaining, and controlling the tourism destination. In the similar means, this could create employment for the long-term that expected to reduce poverty. Therefore, the existence of tourism destination could encourage the local people.

The fourth is ecological sustainability. The purpose is that in developing the tourism destinations, the investors should notice the environmental problems that probably present around the tourism destination location. Because of that, it should be ensured that the design, planning, development, and preservation of tourism destinations are harmonized with the sustainable development concepts. This approach is expected to help to protect the ecological diversity and other natural resources that exist around the tourism destination.

Indeed, it is not easy to implement this sustainable development without any compliance of the investor and the officials. As one of the reasons is that the implementations of STD requires a lot of fund that might lessen the earned profit of them. Besides that, sometimes it is difficult to understand and harmonize what is required by the tourism destination business and the local people/communities. However in fact, STD is worth to try to create the better and eco-friendly tourism.

In comparing the implementations of STD in some countries, I already pick two countries; they are South Africa and Madagascar. Why? Because they lay in the same region of southern Africa, though Madagascar is separated from African continent.

South Africa
Exactly, South Africa (SA) has already established several bodies that have been functioned to orchestrate its tourism operations control. They are SA Tourism Services Association (SATSA) and The Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA). This country is listed as a member of Conservation Corporation Africa as well. SATSA is dedicated to provide and maintain the highest possible standards in the tourism industry within SA, while FTTSA is dedicated to standardize and educate the foreign tourism investor so that they will implement the STD. Even, SATSA had ever cooperated with The Times, World Travel Market, and Geographical Magazine in establishing Responsible Tourism Award. The purpose of that body’s establishment is for rewarding the other bodies that had been trying to fully commit themselves to save the local people culture and economy from some development harms, and give their contributions for biodiversity conservations.

As we have already known, SA had been the host of one of earth summit that discussed about environmental issues. It was held in 2002 as it’s called as Johannesburg Earth Summit. This is because this country has been already attempting the sustainable development for more than twenty years, especially in tourism sector. In 1995, SA government has established their spirit to support the implementation of STD by proclaiming Green Tourism. Green Tourism has been attempted to promote all the tourism destinations in the entire SA. Thus, they are expected to be eco-friendly.

Besides that, Green Tourism has been designed that could also give advantages to the local people and respect the continuously upheld heritages. For example, the tourism destinations that have been implementing the values of Green Tourism are Madikwe Game Reserve. It lays in the north-west if SA and already well known as it’s succeeded in creating employment and endeavoring the conservation. The other examples are Transfrontier Parks South Africa and Kruger National Park that has been employing around 60.000 people from local communities.

The programs of local people empowerment as mentioned in a frame work named Pro-Poor Tourism (PPT). It means that SA wants to improve the opportunities for local (poor) people to run their economic activities through tourism sector.

As STD has been implemented in this country, so many programs has embedded in daily life of the people. There the waste is separated among the glass, paper, plastic, and cans. They mean to be recycled. The detergent that’s used is only the bio-degradable ones. The organic products have become priority for all the food necessary, and so on.

Besides those programs, as every country that implements STD, SA also has ecotourism. As it’s rich in biodiversity (10% plant diversity in the entire world live in SA. They are about 8000 types), SA uses it as its ecotourism main attraction. The efforts of this ecotourism could also employ the local people so that could reduce poverty. The employment could be formed as the local people involvement in maintaining and controlling the tourism destination, so it would be a long-term employment. At the same time, with the local people involvement could keep the tourism on the track of local culture.

Madagascar
Actually, Madagascar is a promising country to develop its tourism, especially in STD. This country has rich biodiversity, unique wildlife, and gorgeous beaches that worth to visit as tourism destination (Madagascar coastal line around 5000 km). With all the beauty it has, Madagascar in the past time was one of the popular tourism destinations. In the 1990, tourism had become the countable sector in earning the profit for the government and as it was employing 260.000 people. It’s pretty succeeded to attempt their vision to reduce poverty then.
Despite it has great biodiversity and tourism resources, the tourism and sustainable development in Madagascar has developed quite slowly recently. It is caused by its government that did not really concern to STD. Hence, that made Madagascar lack of knowledge and understanding about STD. This reality was actually because the economic crisis that violated its economy and tourism for sure, by the beginning of 2000. Because of it, the tourism development has reduced its speed. But it was not taking too long time since the government then got up and started to make a list of all prosperous sectors that might save their economy from the harming crisis. The government has pointed several sectors as prime tools for reducing poverty that had been getting worse by the crisis intruded upon their country. As a result, Madagascar government has made a frame work named Madagascar Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) in 2001. In that framework, tourism has taken part as one of their primary tools that expected to relieve the terrible effects of the crisis.
On the contrary with South Africa that has been already settled and developed in its tourism and implementation of STD, Madagascar is currently in process of guidance by several organization to assist it to re-promote its tourism and implement STD. Its tourism ministry has been taking part in an NGO named Groupe Development that has been establish by French government. This NGO performs in STD sector. Besides Groupe Development, this country has also been assisted by World Bank and European Union to promote its tourism. World Bank has designed a program named Pôles Intégrés de Croissance and European Union has created an agenda called GoToMadagascar. Both programs actually have the same assignments to assist Madagascar to understand and implement STD comprehensively, particularly for the tourism investors and their officials. Numerous community based tourism nowadays has been developing and should be a good starting point for Madagascar to implement STD in the days after. Even, the government has declared its tagline for asserting its passion to tourism : No future without tourism.

Conclusion
Despite both country lie in the similar region of southern Africa, in fact they have pretty different character in the implementation of STD. South Africa as one of the most developed countries in Africa has eminently implemented STD. It has several frame work that reflects its awareness of the STD emergence as well, such as Green Tourism and Pro-Poor Tourism. Nowadays, one by one STD element of STD has been implemented. In its every tourism development, the officials and the investor has always been considering the existence of local people and communities that live around the tourism destinations. Those local has been given opportunities to run its economic activities and get involved in the development of the tourism development. The employment that has been created helps the government to reduce the unemployment and poverty. Even, the country has several bodies that particularly functioned to assist and supervise the STD implementation as well.

In contrast with South Africa, Madagascar is still in process to begin its implementation of STD. The internal trouble that occurred in this country had force little effort of its government to give more concern and create awareness in STD implementation. Nevertheless, since the Pôles Intégrés de Croissance and some other programs have been instigated by the stakeholders, the STD in this country has been tried to improve.

References :
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Farm 215. http://www.farm215.co.za/sustainable.html accessed in June 25th 2009.

Kwaramba, Hazel. 2008. Sustainable Tourism Development in South Africa. Webmaster (April 16th). http://www.utwente.nl/cstm/research/summary/southafrica.doc/ accessed in 25th June 2009.

Madagascar Consulate for Cape Town. Madagascar Tourism. http://www.madagascarconsulate.org.za/tour.html accessed in June 25th 2009.

Lighthouse Foundation. 2007. Madagascar: Sustainable Tourism for Sainte Marie and Ile aux Nattes. http://www.lighthouse-foundation.de/index.php?id=223&L=1 accessed in June 25th 2009.