ties presentation voices from the field review copy 19 january 2016

Voices from the FieldFrom Theory to Reality

Presenters:

Jelte BakkerChristine Braganza

Global Tourism Consultants

Voices from the FieldFrom Theory to RealityGlobal Tourism

Consultants


Case Studies

Our original assumptions from a tourism perspective

Reality vs the assumptions we made

The lessons we learned



Who’s here……

• Tourism suppliers (operators/agents/airlines/lodging/transport)• Tourist boards and Destinations (national/regional)• Government Organizations• Academics (Universities/educational) • NGOs and Funders• Media• Others



Two Case Studies

Tajikistan, Central Asia: Location: The Pamir MountainsPartner: The Aga Khan Foundation.Project: Strengthening Tourism Businesses For Economic Development….Tasked to: Transfer and Share tourism skills to tourism-related entities

Guyana, South America : Location: Rupununi in the North Amazonian Basin. Partner: Conservation International, GuyanaProject: Low Carbon Development StrategyTasked to: Work with indigenous communities to further develop tourism skills



Two Case Studies

Tajikistan, Central Asia

Map

Guyana, South America

Map



Two Case Studies


TAJIKISTAN / PAMIRS GUYANA / RUPUNUNI

ROLE OF GOVERNMENT OBSTRUCTIVE, NO FUNDS HIERARCHICAL AND ARCHAIC, LOW BUDGET

INFRASTRUCTURE VERY POOR, RAW ROADS, NO SCHEDULED AIRLINE, POOR COMMUNICATION

POOR, RAW ROADS, LIMITED AIR CAPACITY,POOR COMMUNICATION

PARTNER AKF: SHORT –TERM FUNDING, WILLING PARTNERS BUT INFLEXIBLE

CI: NO TOURISM EXPERTISE, SHORT-TERM FUNDING, WILLING PARTNERS

TOURISM PRODUCT RAW AND UNPOLISHED RAW AND UNPOLISHED

SKILL LEVEL: ACTORS LOW LOW

MARKET DATA NON-EXISTENT NON-EXISTENT

POTENTIAL MARKETS ADVENTURE, TREKKING, BIKING, EXPERIENTIAL MOUNTAINEERING

ADVENTURE, NATURE, BIRDING, EXPERIENTIAL

COST/COMPETITION EXPENSIVE WITH STRONG COMPETITION

EXPENSIVE WITH STRONG COMPETITION


Original Assumptions

• All actors have a basic understanding of tourism

Concepts like product, markets, sales & promotion and competition are understood

• Familiarity with the principles of nature-based tourism• Understanding of the fundamentals of a working economy and

general business practices (cash economies vs barter practices)• A viable product with ready markets • Realistic Timelines/Expectations and targets



Reality

• Projects were more focused on development than tourism• Different levels of understanding of tourism of all actors• Very poor or non-existent infrastructure (never mind tourism

infrastructure)

In Communities: • No personal experience of being a tourist, either locally or

internationally in communities• No knowledge of business practices in communities (accounting,

sales, negotiation, marketing, promotion)



Wake up! Recalibrate! Redefine Goals

• Step back from the tourism perspective: accept that tourism may be secondary in the big picture

• Like it or not, you might have to address governance/political issues/local infrastructure first

• Cookie cutter approach yields no-or -very-little results since levels of expertise of actors are very different

• Only when there is trust and respect will people listen to you



The Lessons we Learned

• The projects we encountered were not market-driven propositions (but NGO-funded ideals)

• We taught tourism AND just about everything else • Ensure you have committed counterparts from the start• Your audience has probably heard it all before but in a different

way. Repetition is key• Often your (NGO) partner does not know how to support your

tourism know-how• The national and regional tourism entities can lack required

expertise



The Lessons we Learned

• Local ownership is all important• Projects of 10 years or longer have a greater chance of success • Phased ‘guidance/management oversight’ is a necessary

component• Before you start: assess and use to your advantage, local

knowledge and practices (Eg: focus on women and youth – often the work-able men were in the mines or on building sites in other countries).

• Regular and sustained contact and relationships with local actors go a long way to ensure sustainability



Redefining Success

Go Micro; not just Macro….. Small victories at every level

• Making a phone call over skype• Understanding Excel• What is vegetarian? What is vegan? How do I cook an omelette?• What is the meaning of ‘occupancy levels’?• I now understand pricing, commissions, reservation systems• I now understand the meaning of profit and loss• I now know what a standard room in a 3* hotel looks like• I have learned to kill the viper only once the tourists have finished

taking their pictures and have moved on



To summarize, we have discussed:

Case Studies: Tajikistan and Guyana

Our original tourism assumptions

The Reality we faced vs our assumptions

The valuable lessons we learned



Take-Away Ideas

• A Tourism Supplier • Tourist Boards and Destinations (national/regional)• Government Organizations• Academic (Universities/educational) • NGOs and Funders• Media• Others



THANK YOU

Jelte BakkerChristine Braganza


ties presentation voices from the field review copy 19 january 2016

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