Good governance and tourism development in protected areas: The case of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, central Vietnam

Protected areas are increasingly expected to serve as a natural income-producing resource via the exploitation of recreational and touristic activities. Whilst tourism is often considered a viable option for generating income which benefits the conservation of a protected area, there are many cases...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Koedoe 2014-06, Vol.56 (2), p.1-1
Main Authors: Hübner, Anna, Phong, Lý T., Châu, Trương S.H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biodiversity Conservation
Ecotourism
Environmental protection
Environmental Sciences
Landscape protection
Management
Methods
National parks
Natural resources
Politics
Protected Areas
Sustainable development
Tourism
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Summary:Protected areas are increasingly expected to serve as a natural income-producing resource via the exploitation of recreational and touristic activities. Whilst tourism is often considered a viable option for generating income which benefits the conservation of a protected area, there are many cases in which insufficient and opaque planning hinder sustainable development, thereby reducing local benefit sharing and, ultimately, nature conservation. This article delineated and examined factors in governance which may underlie tourism development in protected areas. Based on Graham, Amos and Plumptre's five good governance principles, a specific analysis was made of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in central Vietnam, which highlighted challenges in the practical implementation of governing principles arising for nature conservation, sustainable tourism development and complex stakeholder environments. This research has shown that, tourism and its development, despite a more market-oriented and decentralised policymaking, is a fragmented concept impacted by bureaucratic burden, lack of institutional capacities, top-down processes and little benefit-sharing.
ISSN:0075-6458
2071-0771
2071-0771
DOI:10.4102/koedoe.v56i2.1146