NewsWhore
06-13-2006, 02:10 PM
Eduard Muller, member of the consulting council of the UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme, is in the Dominican Republic to participate in an evaluation of Bahia de las Aguilas to determine whether it is feasible to develop tourism projects in that protected area. Muller is also vice president of the World Commission for Protected Areas for the World Conservation Union.
Muller is an advocate of the operation of small businesses in protected areas. "In stead of having 500 ladies cleaning bathrooms, making beds and caring for gardens, it is better to have 50 or 60 managers of small businesses that generate enough to maintain their families and there is a trickle down benefit for different sectors in the community," he said, as reported in Hoy newspaper. He said these projects activate the productive sectors in the region. For example, the farmers could generate better products and chains of middlemen would not be necessary, given the smaller scales. "There is a system of local development that can beat poverty that is achieved through sustainable tourism based on pristine natural resources. If large hotel complexes are developed in protected areas, then the resources are exported and do not reach the local communities," he said. He said countries need to think about benefiting more their own people and less the large corporations.
Muller said that one of the challenges of the moment is that the DR needs to analyze what mass tourism means in economic terms. He said that if the authorities do so, they will realize that the benefits of ecotourism are greater.
"Ecological and sustainable tourism generates many times more income that stays in the country than the great international hotel corporations," he stressed. He mentioned the case of Monteverde, Costa Rica, where 83% of all that a tourist spends stays in the country. He says that when the large chains operate, an estimated 14% remains in the country.
Muller stressed that what is worse, is that Latin American countries have perverse laws that exempt the millionaire countries from paying taxes. He said that in recent years, Costa Rica reverted to favor mass tourism, and this resulted in revenues entering the country per tourist dropping considerably. "Five or six years ago we received an estimated US$1,350 per trip per tourist, but now with double the number of tourists due to mass tourism facilities built under two presidents that are in jail, the present income per stay is down to US$850. That is, the daily revenue per trip declined from US$120 to US$65," he explained.
The evaluation event will take place at the Universidad Technologica de Barahona, with the support of the Ministry of Environment, the government of Spain, Grupo Jaragua, and several other organizations.
http://www.unesco.org/mab/mabProg.shtml
Link To Original Article (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)
Muller is an advocate of the operation of small businesses in protected areas. "In stead of having 500 ladies cleaning bathrooms, making beds and caring for gardens, it is better to have 50 or 60 managers of small businesses that generate enough to maintain their families and there is a trickle down benefit for different sectors in the community," he said, as reported in Hoy newspaper. He said these projects activate the productive sectors in the region. For example, the farmers could generate better products and chains of middlemen would not be necessary, given the smaller scales. "There is a system of local development that can beat poverty that is achieved through sustainable tourism based on pristine natural resources. If large hotel complexes are developed in protected areas, then the resources are exported and do not reach the local communities," he said. He said countries need to think about benefiting more their own people and less the large corporations.
Muller said that one of the challenges of the moment is that the DR needs to analyze what mass tourism means in economic terms. He said that if the authorities do so, they will realize that the benefits of ecotourism are greater.
"Ecological and sustainable tourism generates many times more income that stays in the country than the great international hotel corporations," he stressed. He mentioned the case of Monteverde, Costa Rica, where 83% of all that a tourist spends stays in the country. He says that when the large chains operate, an estimated 14% remains in the country.
Muller stressed that what is worse, is that Latin American countries have perverse laws that exempt the millionaire countries from paying taxes. He said that in recent years, Costa Rica reverted to favor mass tourism, and this resulted in revenues entering the country per tourist dropping considerably. "Five or six years ago we received an estimated US$1,350 per trip per tourist, but now with double the number of tourists due to mass tourism facilities built under two presidents that are in jail, the present income per stay is down to US$850. That is, the daily revenue per trip declined from US$120 to US$65," he explained.
The evaluation event will take place at the Universidad Technologica de Barahona, with the support of the Ministry of Environment, the government of Spain, Grupo Jaragua, and several other organizations.
http://www.unesco.org/mab/mabProg.shtml
Link To Original Article (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)