family tim
e/work training
opportunity health/age
location interest
other 0
5 10 15 20 25
Impediments
% Respondents
7.4 Synopsis and Conclusion
The study examined perceptions and attitudes of local people concerning the Kakum Conservation Area of Ghana. It revealed patterns in local perceptions and attitudes with respect to ecotourism that are of relevance for the debate about ecotourism and protected area management particularly in the KCA of Ghana. The establishment of the protected area and the subsequent promotion of ecotourism as observed by this study, contradict the theoretical idea of ecotourism which seeks to ensure local people’s benefits by promoting sustainable local development. Hence, the findings illustrate that local people’s perceptions and attitudes are markedly shaped by their perceived losses as well as by their non‐involvement in ecotourism management.
The study enumerated some of the main obstacles that prevent local people from participate in ecotourism. In the specific case of KCA, management authorities (WD and GHCT) have neglected to respect and address the needs of local residents, probably as a result of deficiencies in a top‐down management strategy. According to Allen, et. al. (1988) governments tend to optimise government economic benefits from ecotourism. Therefore it is necessary to perform a continuous monitoring of its impacts in order to avoid adverse effects and maximise the benefits for local people and development. The study observed a general local support for increasing in tourism activities.
Respondents would like to encourage tourist activities to be extended to village communities. This reflects a desire for any form of development rather than the conviction about tourism benefits. The study also noted that most respondents have no clear idea concerning the possible impacts of ecotourism on livelihoods. This is an indication that ecotourism has so far not been beneficial to the
140 | P a g e local people in the Kakum Conservation Area. The local people could be more supportive concerning conservation and accommodative to ecotourism if their needs were adequately addressed.
A dismaying feature of KCA is that, even though tourist visits increased, conservation efforts will continue to face challenges because local people are not adequately involved in planning and management of activities nor do they benefit in any respect. The majority of respondents complained that community interests are not important for the management. Hence there are no viable alternative activities to offset the difficulties resulting from the restrictions imposed on consumptive use of resources in the conservation area. Since there are no direct or quantifiable benefits to the local people, the study could not demonstrate that benefits from ecotourism do engender support for conservation.
Ziffer (1989) stated that ecotourism will not succeed and may even be detrimental to local communities if planning and decision‐making does not involve them. Eventually local people would compete with tourists for the resource on which ecotourism depends. Observations indicate that, in spite of all the law enforcement put in by WD staff, there is evidence of permanent unauthorized human activities within the boundaries of the conservation area. To mitigate potential conflicts of interest between park and local people, it is urgent to develop employment opportunities and establish reasonable compensation mechanisms. If ecotourism shall support conservation, it has to support the development around the conservation area. Management authorities should as a matter of urgency address issues of benefit sharing while involving adjacent communities in planning and management. This could be achieved by targeting training programmes to ensure that further development of ecotourism opens up job opportunities for the local people and increase their access to the tourism market.
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143 | P a g e Chapter Eight: Status of Ecotourism in the Kakum Conservation Area