Geopolitics of tourism

-

Geographical factors like natural resources, location, size, topography, demography and climate have a huge impact on the international political behaviour of a particular state. These factors have caused states to go to war, enforce sanctions, issue travel warnings, spy on each other and engage in other activities aimed at safeguarding their citizens.  


These geographical factors also have an impact on international tourists. Tourists are people who travel for pleasure. Some tourists are attracted to a particular place because of its topography, climate, or location. They want to enjoy the white sandy beaches and the warm sunshine which are natural features. Other travelers are of the opinion that location makes the destination exotic. 

A few years’ back tourists were reluctant to travel to West Africa for demographic reasons. Governments all over the world issued travel warnings and bans to avoid the possibility of a global Ebola pandemic. Tourists were also advised by their respective governments not to travel to countries like Iraq, Syria and Israel because of ongoing conflicts that are related to natural resources and topography. 

According to the PNG Vision 2050 strategic plan, the increase in the number of tourist coming to PNG is an indicator that security agencies like the National Intelligence Organization, Royal PNG Constabulary, Department of Defence and Customs have played their part in ensuring that PNG is a safe and peaceful society.

Tourists are classed into various categories based on their motive for travelling. We need to understand them well from a geopolitical point of view in order to contribute effectively to the development of the tourism industry. 

That is why the strategic plan highlights the need to introduce a tourism and hospitality curriculum in high schools, secondary schools and national high schools around the country. Such a move will make a population tourism literate.

As announced by the Head of Department for the Tourism and Hospitality Ms. Theresa Kau and the President of Divine Word University Professor Cecelia Nembou, the Minister for Tourism and Culture Honorable Tobias Kulang’s seed funding of K100,000 to the Department to start a Tourism and Hospitality Research Centre at the University is strategic to the development of the tourism industry.  

Those who travel to PNG for topographic reasons are important to the economy. Take for instance mountaineers; PNG has Mount Wilhelm and other mountains that are unique. This group of tourists will travel to PNG to climb these mountains if these products are attractively package. 



The same can be said for fishing aficionados, the many fresh rivers around the country is home to game fish like Barramundi and Bass. The sea is also stocked with marine resources Tuna and Marlin. The government needs to support and promote fishing tournaments both nationally and internationally as well to market the country’s potential.  

The high mountains and deep gorges mean fast flowing rapids suitable for kayakers. Beach resorts that have kayaking as an outdoor activity are perfect for those who love kayaking.

Surfers, cavers and bird watchers are other tourists who will travel to the most remote places around the country to experience something new. PNG has the best waves, unexplored caves and a variety of tropical birds.

Location is tied to history; this was evident in the second world war where the Japanese tried to take control of Port Moresby so they could launch an attack on Australia. We can use this historical narrative to market the Kokoda trek location to attract Japanese tourists. 

This is the reason why there is a need to register all terrestrial and marine resources as incorporated group for tourism as outlined in the strategic plan. A particular clan or an individual who owns a piece of land which has great potential for tourism can register their groups including travel companies and start marketing their products.   

The government cannot work alone to develop the key geographical factors that influence the flow of tourism. Other actors in the private sector need to come on board with their capital investment to boost the tourism industry.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

FPA: Organizational Process Model

-
This model centers on the fact that different bureaucracies have different standard operating procedures. These procedures are made in order to allow day to day operations to be carried out. Thus, a foreign policy decision is made based on these standard operating procedures. It is hard for a bureaucracy to make a decision or let alone function out of character or contrary to their standard operating procedure. The reading Chapter 4: Foreign policy shares a straight forward explanation of the OPM: "An alternative to the rational model of decision making is the organizational process model. In this model, foreign policy decision makers generally skip the labor-intensive process of identifying goals and alternative actions, relying instead for most decisions on standardized responses or standard operating procedures. For example, the U.S. State Department everyday receives more than a thousand reports or inquiries from its embassies around the world and sends out more than a
Read more

Commercial liberalism and the six norms

-
Image
Liberal internationalism is defined by Griffiths, O'Callaghan and Roach (2008, p.190) as a project to transform international relations so that they conform to models of peace, freedom, and prosperity allegedly enjoyed within constitutional liberal democracies. The same scholars go further by dividing liberalism into three distinct groups. They say these are the three ways to implement the project. The way they present liberal internationalism as a project makes their work interesting. Three distinct groups Firstly, commercial liberalism is about free trade between states. States bilaterally or multilaterally via a platform like APEC pursue the goal of trade liberalization. Griffiths, O'Callagahan and Roach (ibid.) argued that economic interdependence would decrease the likelihood of going to war. Republican liberalism is about democratic peace. The scholars argued that the spread of democracy among states so that governments will be accountable to their citizens makes it di
Read more

Rise and fall realism

-
Image
By Colin Elman and Michael A. Jensen Source: Williams, P. D. (Ed.). (2008). Security studies: an introduction . London: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group. What is rise and fall realism? Rise and fall realism remerge as a powerful alternative to the balance of power theories that predominated international relations scholarship during the 1950’s. Central theme Hegemony is the foundation for peace while balance is often associated with war (Organski). Dynamics Rise and fall realism emphasizes that war between major powers is least likely when the international system is dominated by a single state and when there are no rising challengers vying for system leadership. Given its privileged position, a dominant state is capable of shaping the rules and practices of the international system in such a way as to satisfy its selfish interest. Stability is a product of this hegemonic order, as states which are dissatisfied with the status quo lack the capabilities to change it.
Read more