BSTM-401 Tourism Impact
* Pro-Poor tourism (PPT) - Results in increased net benefits for poor people. Tourism is often claimed to be the largest industry in the world, thus creating both opportunities and responsibilities. Tourism can make a positive difference – and it should. Tourism can bring great benefits to local communities but only if it brings sustainable livelihoods, employment or additional incomes. The same approaches which have been developed to benefit the economically poor through tourism can also be used to benefit local communities. Pro-Poor Tourism is defined by its beneficiaries – not by the approach and methods used. Pro Poor tourism is set up in developing countries as a means to improve the local economy for local people. It enhances the linkages between tourism businesses and poor people, so that poverty is reduced and poor people are able to participate more effectively in tourism development. The aims of pro-poor ranges from increasing local employment to involving local people in the decision making process. Any type of company can be involved such as a small lodge or a tour operator. The most important factor is not the type of company or the type of tourism, but that poor people receive an increase in the net benefits from tourism. Pro-poor tourism (PPT) is tourism that generates net benefits for the poor. PPT is not a specific product or sector of tourism, but an overall approach. Rather than aiming to expand the size of the sector, PPT strategies aim to unlock opportunities – for economic gain, other livelihood benefits, or engagement in decision-making – for the poor. Why bring a poverty perspective to tourism? Reducing poverty requires ‘pro-poor growth’. Tourism, one of the world’s largest industries, is already growing or significant in most poor