Public-Private

Partnerships for Tourism

Management in Protected

Areas

Jim Barborak

Director, Center for Protected Area Management and Training

Colorado State University

Member, IUCN/WCPA Tourism Working Group

Cantareira State Park, Sao Paolo, Brazil:

An example of the challenges we face

Background

Success in conservation requires public and political support and people support what they know and love

Governments, NGOs, and communities often lack entrepreneurial know-how, tourism know-how and capital needed to successfully manage PA tourism

There is pressure by communities, businesses, and governments for PAs to generate more economic benefits and more revenue to fund PA management

Many PAs, particularly in developing regions, do not fulfill tourism’s potential to generate employment and income and build public awareness and support

Number of national and international tourists to PAs and economic importance of the sector increasing

Institutional Options for

PA management

PAs managed/owned by regional, local governments, intergovernmental authorities

PAs managed/owned by local, regional, natl, intl. NGOs

PAs managed/owned by indigenous tribes

PAs managed/owned by communities

PAs managed/owned by private businesses/companies

PAs managed or owned by universities, research centers

Global tendency: hybrid and comanagement approaches!

Ownership, management authority, service provider, and management category are separate but related concepts!

Partnerships: Key to PA success

• Larger, more complex PAs increasingly use a wide range of institutional options, including permits, contracts, concessions, cooperative agreements and co-management accords

• Partnerships can lead to investments in PA tourism infrastructure and programs

• Successful partnerships can stimulate more public support for conservation, financial benefits for PA agencies and economies, and improved livelihoods for local communities

• Successful partnerships can privatize costs and risks but socialize benefits of tourism in PAs

Values of Tourism Public-Private Partnerships Long Recognized!

• Tourism concessions in US parks for +/- a century! • Partnerships was a theme as long ago as the 1992 World Parks Congress

(Venezuela) • The tourism sessions at the Last World Parks Congress agreed that more

work on the subject is warranted • Major donors (IFC in Mozambique, Indonesia), IDB in Brazil, World Bank,

GEF, UNDP, USAID, interested in topic and increasing investment • CBD specific has more equitable distribution of costs and benefits of

biodiversity conservation as a goal and poverty alleviation is a global development priority

• CBD partnering with Semeia Institute of Brazil for a global study on the subject and a workshop at the CBD COP in Hyderabad

• Tourism to PAs is growing in many parts of the world • Demand for PAs to generate revenue for their own budgets and to

produce more tangible economic benefits locally and nationally is growing

Some challenges

Local actors often lack the entrepreneurial

expertise and capital to successfully participate in

co-management such as concessions

There is no substitute for strong government

institutions; they help guarantee success of

innovative private and community conservation

There is widespread distrust of the private sector,

NGOs and among key actors and stakeholders—

building trust difficult and time-consuming

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve,

Costa Rica: Private-Private

Partnerships!

Owned/managed by NGO

Nearly 100K visitors/yr

Endowment and robust business plan

Restaurant managed by local restaurateur

Guiding managed by local guide association

Gift shop generates much revenue—NGO now manages gift shops at several national parks!

Results of Ongoing Studies on Concessions

Identified key components to ensure success in tourism concessions and agreements in protected areas:

Qualifications of bidders

Legal responsibilities of responsible entities

Financial responsibilities of entities

Environmental responsibilities of entities

Social responsibilities of organizations

Ongoing monitoring and evaluation

Moving towards best practices in tourism

PPPs in PAs

Qualifications

What type of legal entity is created or involved: a private company, consortium, trust, individual, etc.?

How can you ensure that the potential concessionaire/permitee has sufficient experience and capital?

Legal aspects?

Who owns the land and the infrastructure?

Who retains control and stakes in improvements ?

How are risks and unforeseen events managed?

Who is responsible in case of complaints/ accidents?

How are transactions controlled and audited?

What are the consequences of rescinding agreements?

Financial/legal aspects

How long does the agreement last? Can it be amended/extended?

What payment does the partner make? Based on income, # users?

If there is competitive bidding how do we ensure that the best offer wins?

How do we ensure that the partner fulfills the terms of the agreement?

What are the consequences of environmental damage caused by the concessionaire or lack of fulfillment of key clauses in the agreement?

Under what conditions can agreements be rescinded?

Environmental Aspects

How to ensure that infrastructure and its operation comply with environmental standards?

What are the consequences when this does not happen?

Who monitors what when where why and how?

Social Aspects and Equity

How can we ensure benefits for local communities?

How can we ensure that initial benefits are maintained and expanded and monitor this?

Some key lessons learned to date

Partnerships can encourage capital investment , improve visitor services and generate increased revenue flows to PA agencies and economies

PPP can expand tourism and recreation opportunities for national and international visitors leading to greater public and decision maker support for PAs and more environmental awareness

Partnerships between concessionaires and local communities can lead to gradual transfer of ownership, build local capacity and responsibility and reduce PA-community conflict

PAs with greater public use and expanded stakeholder base and public tend to resist threats better than areas off the “mental map” of the public, press and decision makers

What have we achieved since Barcelona four years ago?

– Global Review published (Wyman et al)

– Creation of a PA Tourism Partnerships Bibliography: laws, policies, tenders, case studies

– Global workshop in California sponsored by USNPS and CSU with IUCN/WCPA and UNESCO-WH support

– Regional workshop Southern Africa (Maputo)

– Brazil workshops Sao Paolo and Curitiba

– New policies, laws and tenders in many nations (Costa Rica, Brazil, Chile)

Looking forward

• Best practices manual on PA tourism published

• Best practice manual on PPPs for IUCN WCPA published

• More regional training and best practice workshops

• Use major conferences to discuss progress, challenges

World Wilderness Congress Spain 2013

World Parks Congress Australia 2014

National and regional PA conferences

• Promotion in Europe by PanParks

• Technical assistance missions (USNPS, USFS,

south-south)

• Incorporate training materials in PA training centers

and online

• Implement pilot projects funded by major NGOs,

bilateral and multilateral development banks,

tourism enterprises

• Work with UNESCO, other partners to incorporate

strengthen PPS at WH sites

• Produce and disseminate case studies, best

practice documents, bibliographies

• Key area of activity for IUCN WCPA Tourism

Working Group