the role of tourism in natural resource management in the okavango ...

According to Torres (1996), a wide variety of production, structural, policy, financial,
information and infrastructure constraints contribute to the lack of formation of
linkages between tourism and other economic sectors in Third World tourism
destinations. For example, the Okavango Delta presently lacks the infrastructure and
local marketing outlets to support the development of a successful local produce
industry. The most common constraints preventing the development of linkages
between tourism and agriculture is the inability of subsistence farmers in the Delta to
produce consistently high quality fresh produce. This is due to the harsh climatic
conditions in the region, as well as a lack of knowledge by the local farmers of
commercial farming methods, and lack of support from the government. There are
no significant linkages between local agriculture and tourism in the Okavango Delta.
Hence, the growth of tourism in this region has led to a significant increase in the
need for food imports. This has damaged the local agricultural industry by
completely eliminating the need for local goods, and hence alienating local
agriculture from this sector. The need for food and produce imports also drains
foreign exchange reserves.
Thirdly, investigations were conducted regarding the primary beneficiaries of tourism
in the Okavango Delta. The perceptions by local populations in the Okavango Delta,
and foreign employees in the tourism sector, as to the major beneficiaries of Third
World tourism development, differ greatly. Local residents view foreign tourism
employees and owners, and the Botswana Government, as the recipients of benefits
resulting from tourism growth. Foreigners, who are involved in the industry on the
other hand tend to view the local population as the major beneficiaries, through the
provision of employment opportunities and infrastructural development, brought
about by tourism growth (Ndubano, 2000).
This study, however, reveals that it is the foreigners who dominate the Okavango
Delta's tourism industry, that benefit the most from the sector's development.
Foreigners receive more income from the ownership of tourism related businesses,
and employees receive higher incomes than their local counterparts. A large
proportion of tourism-generated income is also repatriated out of the country by
foreign owners. Martha (1993) has argued that, in addition to tourism employment
being seasonal and part-time, the industry creates low-quality and low paid jobs that
do not help workers, especially the women, to escape from their nearly unbreakable
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