notes on educational disciplines
BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Tourism, a travel for predominantly recreational or leisure purposes, has increasingly gained grounds and recognition over the last few decades. Statistics from countries and international organizations notably the United Nation World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), have recognized the important role played by tourism in the national economy. For instance, the World Travel and Tourism Council estimate that travel and tourism is now the world's largest generator of jobs.
In 2005, the industry provided direct and indirect employment for 212 million people, accounting for 10.7% of the global work force and provided one in every nine jobs. According to the UNWTO's Tourism 2020 Vision forecasts, international arrivals are expected to reach over 1.56 billion by the year 2020. The total tourist arrivals by region show that by 2020 the top three receiving regions will be Europe (717 million tourists), East Asia and the Pacific (397 million) and the Americas (282 million), followed by Africa, the Middle East and South Asia.
The status of tourism as a global and popular activity has led to a huge impact of the tourism industry in the country’s development, thus making it a vital sector of the economy. Recently, Cameroon’s economy witnessed a substantial growth in the tourism industry. Statistics from the National Institute of Statistics (INS) reveal that tourism (restaurants and hotels) occupied the 11th position out of the top 20 sectors of the economy. Its share of Gross National Production (GNP) stood at 4.46%, corresponding to 2.43% of the Gross Domestic Product and with a turnover of about 31.8 billions CFA F. In 2005, the tourism sector employed more than 211 000 people (BEAC 2004; INS 2005)
The tourism sector is a very broad spectrum that can be subdivided into various segments, among which is domestic tourism. Domestic tourism consists of residents of a destination traveling to different parts of their country for non- remuneration purpose and for less than a year. It constitutes an essential but often neglected segment of tourism.
Visitors (Tourists) want to share experiences and interact with the local population. This can only be possible if the local population is aware of whom these visitors are and the nature of their activity, that is, if they have a tourism culture.
Cameroon in general and the South West Region in particular is gifted with rich human and natural resources (27 potential attractions). Statistics show that of the 350,000 tourists who visited Cameroon in 2004, 10% visited Limbe. There are some tourists establishments that have been put in place to cater for the needs of tourists. Some of these establishments include travel and tourism agencies.
In and around the South West Region in particular, these agencies act like intermediaries; they sell, organize and offer services on behalf of the public but mostly concentrate on facilitating visa procedures for Cameroonians and some visitors who intend to travel. Less attention is paid to the local population (residents) traveling to other parts of the country. According to MINTOUR 2005, one of the problems plaguing the tourism industry in Cameroon is the lack a “tourism culture”, notwithstanding its rich potentials in natural resources. Research Objective
The objective of this project is therefore to propose a tourism establishment which can explore the tourist potentials and opportunities in Limbe to promote domestic tourism.
Hypothesis
Limbe is a coastal town endowed with potential tourists attractions. It is equally one of the most important towns in Cameroon (historically and today) due to its geographical location, and economic contributions from companies and industries located in the town. Therefore, it could be hypothesized that there are some opportunities in Limbe that, if properly analyzed by a specialized tourism agency, could constitute a springboard for the development of domestic tourism in Cameroon.
Research Questions
This work is expected to answer the following questions:
1- Does the local population (target group) constitute a potential market segment?
2- If so, what type of organizational structure can best promote domestic tourism in Limbe?
3- What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats facing such an establishment?
Motivation
The motivation behind this work stems from the problems plaguing the sector as underlined by MINTOUR, 2005 and the absence of such a structure in Limbe.
Significance
This project shall be significant to:
- the Government as a whole through the Ministry of Tourism in attaining some of its objectives (increasing the dynamism of the private sector), enhance the development of tourism, contribute to the country’s economic growth and reduce poverty;
- the potential private investors, who are contemplating on investing in the tourism sector in general and especially in the Fako Division.
- the local population: to usher in a new way of life (the tourism culture) and improve the standard of living through the creation of jobs;
- the researcher, to provide the necessary complementary and practical knowledge, beside academic works, to better integrate in the tourism industry and contribute her own quota in the development of Cameroon.
Work demarcation
In order to investigate the above mentioned hypothesis and answer the consequential questions, the remaining parts of this work are organized as follows:
- Part II will explore the literature to understand the scope, definition and approaches of tourism promotion as well as the history and position of tourism in Limbe up to date;
- Part III proposes a methodology and attempt to investigate the market situation (business opportunities in Limbe);
- In Part IV, we will establish of a business strategy to promote domestic tourism in Limbe;
- In Part V, we will analyze the different operations necessary to carry out a business forecast;
- Lastly, in Part VI, we will ensure a business control of the tourism agency which will be followed by a general conclusion.
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