Over Reliance on Tourism in Developing Countries for Gdp Growth

Over Reliance of Tourism for GDP in Developing Countries
The tourism sector has the ability to promote as well as sustain a nation’s economy. But being over-dependent on tourism will prove potentially harmful for unindustrialized nations. One clear example of the consequences of overdependence on tourism is that of the scenic Republic of Maldives, which was mainly reliant on tourism for economic development and sustenance. The nation declared an emergency last year after threats of an attack; its economic condition was subsequently labeled unstable and a near-stoppage in its activities was witnessed. Not even seven days later, the government withdrew the emergency after widespread local and global censure. The emergency was unallowable owing to its immense potential adverse impacts on the nation’s tourism sector (Bojanic and Lo 2016, pg. 4).
Being overly dependent on tourism for supporting the national economy places a nation at significant risk. In general, nations wholly dependent on their tourism sector for generating income experience great vulnerability. Currently, several nations worldwide are getting difficult to access; consequently, their tourism sector has not been operating in a normal manner. A majority of nations have been experiencing natural catastrophes as well as manmade ones (e.g., terror attacks). As a result, in a majority of instances, the tourism will suffer or even completely collapse.
Declining tourism activity due to, perhaps, decrease in the number of visiting tourists, is hard to tackle; of late, nations have scant alternatives to convince tourists to visit. The problem is further exacerbated if national governments advise their citizens not to tour particular nations owing to security issues; in such cases, the dependent nation can, in no way, handle the issue and is at other governments’ mercy (Scheyvens, 2011 pg. 1).
Employment generation is one among the benefits of the tourism sector. According to 2015 statistics, 1,184 million individuals, averagely, visit foreign nations worldwide; further, tourists expend over 1.5 trillion dollars per annum on services and products. Thus, numerous employment and income generation opportunities exist within the tourism sector, including tour guides, coach services, and restaurant attendants and hotel staff (Cheer, 2015, pg. 2).
Additionally, tourism is a great platform from which nations can present local offerings to global markets. Tourists who visit a nation end up purchasing local goods otherwise hard to market to foreign lands (Dredge, D. and Gyimóthy, S., 2015 pg. 20). They exhibit rather high spending power, which renders marketing to them more appealing. Moreover, the food production and retail industries of the country will also profit from tourism (Prideaux, Pabel, and Sakata, 2016 pg. 1).
Enhanced spending power has advantages for local community members as well, who are the recipients of tourist spending. Furthermore, tourism enhances local money circulation within the economy as community members purchase goods like food and clothing, and services such as hairdressing, transport and healthcare (Fang, Ye, and Law, 2016 pg. 261). In other words, tourists make more funds available to citizens of the nations they visit, furthering their purchasing capacity and fostering international trade.
Nations reliant on their tourism sector for income generation usually have better infrastructure. Their governments allocate funds received via the tourism sector for maintaining and developing local airports, roadways, railways and other public facilities (Mowforth, and Munt, 2015 pg. 11). Even the hospitals and schools of the nation will be well-maintained (Mok, Sparks, and Kadampully, 2013 pg. 17).
Finally, tourism would result in industrialization, since nations strive towards supporting it. Tourism dependence would, for example, require resources like agricultural produce and sound means of transportation. The former will prove vital when it comes to stocking restaurants where tourists dine with food. In addition, demands for clothing, artistry and other products that attract tourists will rise, necessitating a growth in these sectors.















Bibliography
Bojanic, D.C. and Lo, M., 2016. A comparison of the moderating effect of tourism reliance on the economic development for islands and other countries. Tourism Management, 53, pp.207-214.
Cheer, J.M., 2015. After the cyclone: why relying on tourism isn’t in Vanuatu’s interests. The Conversation, 15 April.
Dredge, D. and Gyimóthy, S., 2015. The collaborative economy and tourism: Critical perspectives, questionable claims and silenced voices. Tourism Recreation Research, 40(3), pp.286-302.
Fang, B., Ye, Q. and Law, R., 2016. Effect of sharing economy on tourism industry employment. Annals of Tourism Research, 57, pp.264-267.
George, R., Barben, T., Chivaka, R., van Vuuren, M.J., Knott, B., Lehmann, S., Mulder, M., Nel, J., Nieuwenhuizen, C., Saunders, C. and Swart, K., 2016. Managing tourism in South Africa (No. Ed. 2). Oxford University Press.
Mak, J., 2004. Tourism and the economy: Understanding the economics of tourism. University of Hawaii Press.
Mok, C., Sparks, B. and Kadampully, J., 2013. Service quality management in hospitality, tourism, and leisure. Routledge.
Mowforth, M. and Munt, I., 2015. Tourism and sustainability: Development, globalization and new tourism in the third world. Routledge.
Scheyvens, R., 2011. The challenge of sustainable tourism development in the Maldives: Understanding the social and political dimensions of sustainability. Asia Pacific Viewpoint, 52(2), pp.148-164.
Prideaux, B., Pabel, A. and Sakata, H., 2016. The cassowary as a tourism icon: opportunities and limitations. Journal of Ecotourism, pp.1-24.