Enhancing Stakeholders Participation in Community-Based Tourism Planning: An Application to Don-Manora Floating Market, Thailand Nopparat Suthitakon* & Sombat Karnjanakit^ & Suchart Taweepornpathomgul *Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, nnp2506@hotmail.com ^Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, SOMBATKARN@hotmail.com Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, suchart_ta@hotmail.com Abstract Although the iconic floating markets in Thailand have been promoted both domestically and internationally, without a well-planned tourism initiative, virtually all of them have lost their authenticity. To preserve the culture of the Don-Manora floating market, this study aimed to enhance local participation in tourism planning in the Samut Songkhram province. There were 720 stakeholders involved in this study. The Don-Manora tourism planning and development initiated during this study including the foundation of Don-Manora tourism committees, the creation of a home stay group among 12 households, and the discussion of tourism rules and regulations among interested participants. The evidence shows that local participation in tourism increased dramatically during the planning process. Keywords: participation, empower, tourism planning, sustainable development, communitybased tourism Introduction Tourism has been an important industry for economic growth in Thailand since the 1960s; consequently, the Tourist Organisation of Thailand (TOT) was founded in 1960 to promote and market tourism (Market Research Report (TAT), 2007). In 2011, the revenue from tourism in Thailand was 585,961.80 million Baht (Department of Tourism, 2010). In contrast to this economic growth, Thailand also faced negative impacts, including natural degradation and socio-cultural distortion, resulting from unplanned tourism in many destinations. Therefore, specific tourism development plans were first established in the Fourth National Economic and Social Development Plan (1977-1981) (Payakka-Vichien, 2006). As a result, in 1979, the TOT was upgraded to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), and its responsibilities were expanded to tourism planning and development to reduce the negative impacts caused by tourism. 294
At the same time, a sustainable approach to tourism development has been a focus since the recognition of Agenda 21. In the Ninth National Economic and Social Development Plan (2002-2006), the Thai government emphasised the development of sustainable tourism; for example, TAT continuously promotes the 7 Greens concepts of green heart, green activity, green community, green service, green attraction, and green plus (www.7greens.tourismthailand.org). These concepts focus on alternative tourism related to sustainable development. Thus community-based tourism is one alternative form of tourism that is of research interest because community involve in tourism decision-making should result in socioeconomic benefit to the local residents (Mitchell & Reid, 2000). There are many well-known floating markets locating near Don-Manora, such as Damnoen Saduak, Ampawa, Bang-Noi, and Taka. However, many of these floating markets lost their authenticity and became trade-off tourism. Unknown to most tourists, the Don-Manora Floating Market remains an area floating market where local residents trade their goods (fruits and vegetables) on a specific date and time. This study aimed to enhance local participation in tourism planning at the Don-Manora Floating Market in the Samut Songkhram province. It was hoped that this local participation may lead to sustainable development. Because the focus of this study was on the floating market as a type of community tourism, the development of floating markets in Thailand will be summarised next. Floating Markets in Thailand Floating markets have been a famous tourist destination for more than 4 decades, with 25 well-known floating markets located in the centre region of Thailand. Floating markets can be categorised into 3 types. The first type is an authentic way of life of the Thai people who live near the river or canal and use boats as a traditional form of transportation. Thus, their boats are loaded with goods (mainly foods including fruits and vegetables) to trade in their communities at a specific time and meeting point. Tourists can observe these activities and buy local goods either by boat or at the shoreline, making this a favourable option for both domestic and international tourists. The Don-Manora Floating Market is an example of this type of market. The second type of market is one in which the local community decides to set up a market place for trading along a river or canal where they live. Their goods could be transported either by boats or by trucks. This type of floating market is normally for domestic tourists, who, in addition to shopping, can also enjoy cruising along the river as a sight-seeing excursion. Finally, a thematic floating market village charges an entrance fee for tourists 295
interested in seeing the Thai way of life. This type of floating market also provides other activities for tourists such as shows featuring local dances and elephants. This type of activity is traditionally for groups of domestic and international tourists. Besides its natural biodiversity, the Don-Manora Floating Market is at an early stage in tourism development because there are currently only a small amount of tourists visiting the destination. Although local communities are not very aware of tourism s impact, the community leaders of the eight villages in Don-Manora were interesting in developing tourism and thus agreed to support this project. In any tourism development project, the participation of stakeholders is necessary. Although it is complicated to involve diverse stakeholders in the tourism planning process, their involvement may significantly benefit the sustainability of tourism. In particular, the participation of various stakeholders with difference interests and ideas may support more discussion of the social, cultural, environmental, economic and political issues affecting sustainable development (Garrod, 2003; Murray, 2002; Reed, 2000; Richard & Hall, 2000). Therefore, multiple methods used to enhance stakeholders participation in tourism planning will be discussed next. Stakeholders Participation in Tourism Planning The international Association for public participation suggested that the process to encourage stakeholders participation should include effective communication (Creighton, 2008), which means access to adequate information is crucial (Jack, 2002b).Consequently, tourism education is essential for enhancing local awareness of both the positive and negative impacts of tourism (Jack, 2002a). Finally, the plans should support public interests and alleviate any conflicts among the interested parties (Swaroop & Morenoff, 2006). The idea has been proposed that there are many levels of stakeholders participation. Categorized according to their interest and responsibility in specific subject (Lepineux, 2005). At the same time, when stakeholders interest increases, their level of participation increases accordingly (Hansen, Bode, & Moosmayer, 2004). Thus, appropriate techniques in the planning process might enhance stakeholders interest in tourism planning, resulting in more intense participation. However, it is important to apply the right tools and techniques to different individual and groups of stakeholders (Akdere, 2003). The diverse stakeholders (n=720) involved in this study including local residents, public sectors (e.g., Tourism department, schools, and the community hospital), private sectors (e.g., the Thai Chamber of Commerce), and tourists. 296
Methodology Participatory Action Research (PAR) was used to engage key stakeholders, particularly the local residents, from the beginning of the development process through the initiation of tourism projects. The tools and techniques applied during the planning process included observations, questionnaires, preliminary meetings, individual interviews, focus groups, and workshops. Table 1 shows the application of tools and techniques to stakeholders. Table 1: Application of tools and techniques to stakeholders Stakeholder Local community Tourists Residents Elite persons Tools & techniques Questionnaire X X Preliminary X X meeting Interview X Private sectors Focus group X X Workshop X X X X Tourism audit X X Public sectors At the very early stage of this study (stage 1), literature about Don-Manora was identified to further examine its geography, population and culture. To gain insights into the major issues surrounding tourism in this area, observations and questionnaires were used to examine the attitudes, perceptions and consumption behaviour of both tourists and local residents regarding the floating market. Preliminary meetings were also arranged to gain stakeholders interest in tourism planning and unite their support for the implementation of tourism programs (Figure 1). 297
Method/Tool Diagnosing Pro Outputs/Outcome Observation Tourist Questionnaire Resident Preliminary meeting Resident Questionnaire Individual interviews Stage I Identified - Tourism resources - Tourism impact - Tourists needs - Residents opinions - Gained necessary information - Gained stakeholders participation Method/Tool Planning Action Outputs/Outcomes Focus groups Stage II Identified - Elite persons - Voluntary stakeholders - Tourism problems - Stakeholders interest in tourism increased - Solutions to the problems were formulated - Information was exchanged Method/Tool Taking Action Outputs/Outcomes Workshops Stage III Educated and motivated stakeholders in tourism planning and development - Gained local participation - Exchanged knowledge - Enhanced cooperation and collaboration between stakeholders Method/Tool Evaluation Expected Outputs/Outcomes Observation Interview Stage IV Process evaluation - Signs of being empowered - Signs of sustainability Figure 1 Participatory Action Research process applied to the Don-Manora Floating Market 298
Figure 1 demonstrates the group processes for participatory and collaborative arrangements. Focus groups and workshops examined stakeholders participation in community-based tourism planning. Furthermore, vertical and horizontal collaboration within and between groups and organisations was fostered to allow participation in decision-making. The evaluation stage was arranged within six months after stage III to track the signs of community empowerment and sustainable tourism development. Findings At the first stage, the findings from residents questionnaires (n=346) showed that most respondents (67.3%) felt they had little or no involvement in tourism planning in the area. However, they agreed that Don-Manora could be developed as a tourists destination because of the cultural attractions such as temples, religious events, and Thai style houses. Respondents also recognised both the positive and negative impacts caused by tourism. It was important that all of the respondents had an opportunity to raise their opinions concerning tourism in the area; as a consequence, some respondents (17.63%) want to be involved in the tourism planning process. The community preliminary meeting was an effective tool to foster local interest in tourism planning. Almost all of the 265 participants desired to engage in tourism development, and they agreed that tourism development in Don-Manora should be based on its natural and cultural resources. From the preliminary meetings, key persons were also identified and interviewed, and the additional information about Don-Manora that was received was used in the planning process while simultaneously securing the support of these critical participants. A focus group of developers (public and private sectors) was held to gain participants opinions and support for tourism development in Don-Manora. The developer suggestions included the following: the host community should engage in tourism planning for sustainability; tourism development committees should be created to motivate and assess tourism development performance; the participation of low status residents such as senior person and the youth should be encouraged; local tourism products and services should be promoted; infrastructure development should accommodate the increasing numbers of tourists; appropriate tourism activities for tourists, such as water-based activities, should be initiated: both natural and cultural tourism resources should be conserved; the carrying capacity of the destination should be determined; and tourism networks should be encouraged. The findings from the observations, questionnaires, preliminary meetings, interviews, and focus group were fundamental to the planning process and implementation. 299
Implementation and Discussion Findings from the first stage were concluded and communicated to stakeholders with a strong interest in participation in the Don-Manora tourism planning process. With the support of the Tourism Department (Samut Songkhram province), workshops were held to examine tourism situations in the area using SWOT analysis and Problem Tree analysis. After these analyses and discussions of these tourism situations, participants drafted 8 projects they felt would enhance tourism development (Table 2 next page). It was agreed that the proposed projects should benefit both the communities and the tourists. At the same time, the activities would be supported by both the public and private sectors and compatible with the communities environment. These 8 projects included promoting destinations to tourists; improving the local landscape and facilities to accommodate tourists; conservation of local wisdom; environmental conservation; youth tourist guide training; homestay training; Thai massage training; and bicycle trail development. From these workshops, it was evident that the participation of stakeholders increased dramatically, especially for those in the local community. During the planning process, participants were educated, informed, and empowered by being provided opportunities to express their opinions; therefore, their interest in tourism development also increased. From SWOT analysis, participants recognised tourism situations in Don-Manora and felt responsible for improving their surroundings to accommodate tourists. This meant the appropriate tools and techniques applicable in the planning process could indirectly increase participants sense of place. Additionally, the participants proposed projects showed their awareness of the impact of tourism on local destinations. Indeed, the projects aimed to improve tourism products and services in Don-Manora while simultaneously protecting tourism environments. They also recognised the importance of mutual contribution, promoting the participation of women, youths, and seniors in some projects. Signs of sustainable tourism development in Don-Manora appeared a few months after the workshops with the creation of tourism development committees. Next, specific projects were implemented, including homestay training, youth tourist guide training, and Thai massage training. Additionally, thirteen households formed a home-stay group, and rules and regulations concerning tourism were discussed among interested participants. 300
Table 2 Workshop participants proposed projects In conclusion, the Participatory Action Research (PAR) applied in this study initiated stakeholders interest in tourism development. As a consequence of this increasing interest, overall participation in tourism planning was enhanced. In the planning process, participants 301
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