TOURISM IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA: ITS ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTIONS
FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
By:
Mrs Evelyn Kua
Dr. Joyce Rayel
Prof. C.L.N. Pillai
Mr. Ponnusamy Manohar
School of Business Administration
University of Papua New Guinea
Abstract
Tourism
is now regarded as one of the world’s leading industries and fastest growing
economic sectors. It has been described as a diverse and global industry that
integrates various sectors within the government of which its economic
perspective and contribution is very much significant to the nation. Using
phenomenological approach with documentary analysis and desktop research as
primary methods of gathering data, this paper introduces theoretical
understanding of tourism as an economic activity and dynamic industry that
creates substantial economic impacts while protecting the sensitive environment
and delicate social fabric of the local community. Likewise, this paper unfolds
tourism economic contributions utilizing relevant global, regional and national
tourism statistics to draw a vivid portrait of the sector and its inherent
capability to act as catalyst of economic growth particularly in a country
where extractive resource industries dominates the economy. The highlight of
the discussion centres on the tourism status of Papua New Guinea as a
destination in the Pacific Region and the role tourism will portray in making Papua
New Guineans to be happy, healthy and smart by 2050. The analysis of the
discussion indicates that tourism has a huge potential to be developed in PNG
because of its innate natural beauty and fascinating diverse culture. However,
tourism in PNG is still experiencing fledgling stage with relatively slow pace
of development compared with its neighbouring countries within the South
Pacific Region. This study concludes with viable recommendations that fine
tuning economic growth strategies and diversion of focus to a more sustainable
industry that can drive a healthy national economy is crucial in achieving
PNG’s Vision 2050. Strong political
will, effective tourism planning, strategic leadership and alliance amongst
tourism stakeholders and positive outlook of the local people as resource
owners about tourism are prevailing contributory factors to bringing a real
paradise in the “land of unexpected”.
Tourism
has been recognized as one of the largest and fastest industry manipulating the
global economy. Its economic contributions are immensely recognized by
developed countries because of its actual and potential astounding economic impacts
while less developed countries reinvent their wheels to make tourism as growth
strategy to achieve a wider spectrum of their economic objectives. The high
growth and development rate of tourism, considerable volumes of foreign
currency inflows, infrastructural development and introduction of a more
effective management actively affect various sectors of economy, which
positively contribute to the social and economic development of the country as
a whole (Mirbabayev & Shagazatova, ND). Recent statistics from UNWTO (2012)
shows that tourism is one of the world’s largest economic sectors with a record
of 982 million tourist arrivals and a total of USD1.030 billion in export
earnings for 2011. The industry is also expected to create an additional five
million new jobs worldwide (World Travel and Tourism Council, 2012).
As an
economic activity and service industry, tourism emerged to be a revolutionizing
phenomenon especially in the recent years. It cuts conventional sectors in the
economy like agriculture, fisheries and transport and has outpaced the
manufacturing, information technology and extractive industries like mining as
catalyst of the development process at both national and global levels. Kamra
(2004) pointed out that in certain economies, tourism becomes the foundation of
the environ (economic, socio-cultural and even human) pyramid, while in most
others it is contributing to a significant extent in the general development
process as well as in the solvation of their basic problems. Similarly, Weaver
and Lawton (2006) argued that tourism is an increasingly widespread and complex
activity, which requires sophisticated management to realise its full potential
as a positive and sustainable economic, environmental, social and cultural
force.
In
the Pacific region and elsewhere in the world, tourism represents a major
alternative for small island nations probing to expand their economic base,
increase foreign exchange earnings, generate employment, develop
infrastructure, build more superstructure and eventually enhance the quality of
life for their people. These small island nations collaborate and collectively
identify ways on how tourism in the region offset recurring economic
challenges. They formed the South Pacific Tourism Organization (SPTO) to
establish avenue to discuss regional tourism issues, trends and challenges. In
the report submitted to SPTO by Prof. Milne (2005), he quoted statement of one
SPTO member state tourism planning official:
“How
can we afford to know so little about the economic impacts of this vital
industry?
With
out this sort of information we can plan – its like the blind leading the blind”
The
statement reveals the importance of unfolding the tourism economic
contributions as vital ingredients in effective tourism planning. The more
stakeholders are exposed on how tourism benefits the economy, community and the
environment, the more they are inclined to decisively explore strategic
approaches to sustain tourism development.
Within
the Pacific region is the Melanesian country, Papua New Guinea (PNG). It is the
biggest nation in South Pacific Region, which is known to be the “land of
mystery” whilst others have popularly referred it as “land of unexpected”. It
lies just south of the equator and is part of a great arc of mountains
stretching from Asia, through Indonesia and into the South Pacific. It
encompasses a total land area of 465,000 square kilometres with New Guinea as
the second largest island in the world and includes 85 percent of PNG’s total
land area. The country contains some of the world’s most rugged terrain but is
endowed with fertile soils, abundant rainfall and considerable mineral and
other natural resources. This fascinating land boasts of more than 600 islands
and more than800 indigenous languages and is home to the largest area of intact
rainforest outside of the Amazon (PNG TPA, 2012).The country, being blessed
with iconic landscapes, natural beauty, vast endemic flora and fauna species
and diverse culture captures leisure and holiday tourists with special
interest.
The
tourism industry in PNG has been described as an egg yet to be hatched. For
some, this sector is insignificant and incomparable with the predominant
sectors that the economy of this country is leaning on. The fledgling stage of
tourism defines the limitations of support and commitment accorded by the
government to the industry and the naiveness of the general community on the
significance of tourism in attaining sustainable development. Majority are
still blindfolded on the ability of tourism as an economic booster to construct
a strong pillar for economic growth. The focus has been laid on large-scale
resource projects and extractive industries like mining and petroleum that
generates huge amount of government revenues.
This
unfavourable scenario has been experienced by most country destinations like
Papua New Guinea with tourism as unpopular sector of economy. Amidst this, the
authors of this academic paper are motivated to unfold and tout tourism
economic contributions for the government to explore the wide range of
advantages tourism can offer to the country, to implement strategies in order
to achieve tourism objectives and to put forward mitigating measures to address
adverse impacts. Similarly, this paper
will bring awareness to the general public on the cutting-edge effect of
tourism industry when concerned stakeholders particularly the community
demonstrates approval, support and commitment to all tourism projects.
Theoretical
Review of Tourism
Definitions
The
complex and dynamic nature of tourism makes it difficult to define. By the time
tourism has emerged as an important economic sector, different scholars and
organizations came with their own definition to measure its confines as an
industry and activity. The attempts made to define tourism aimed to come up
with universal and standard definition and set the parameters in establishing
tourism statistics that will gauge the sectors’ growth and development.
Tourism Society in Great Britain made an attempt to forward
tourism definition. The society defined tourism as a temporary short-term
movement of people to destinations outside the place where they normally live
and work and their activities during their stay at these destinations” (Cruz,
1999).
A number of defining principles may refer to tourism which
has been summarized by Burkhart and Medlik in 19899 (cited by Lumsdon 1997):
- Tourism
is an amalgam of phenomena and relationships.
- Two
elements, the journey to the destination (dynamic element) and the stay
(static element) are fundamental.
- This
type of activity takes place away from the normal place of residence and
work and is therefore different to those enjoyed by residents in the areas
through which a visitor travels or stays.
- Movement
is short-term and is intended to be of temporary nature.
- Visits to destinations take place for a number of reasons, but exclude taking up permanent residence or employment, which is remunerated.
In 1993, the United Nations World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO) came up with the definition together with other recommendations on
forms of tourism and other tourism statistics that could be used for
statistical comparison throughout the world.
UNWTO defines tourism as activities of persons travelling to and staying
in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive
year for leisure, business and other reason.
The definitions clearly pointed out the limitations and
considerations in tourism. One has to travel, leave his normal residence and
employment, perform activities that will not lead to income generation and
return to his originating place within the intended time frame.
For a more systematic tourism management, UNWTO also put
forwards definition of tourist and excursionist. Accordingly, a tourist is a
person who visits a country or destination other than that in which he usually
resides for a period of at least 24 hours. UNWTO refers tourist as visitors.
This was held to include persons travelling for pleasure, domestic reasons
or health, persons travelling to meetings or on business. For tourism
statistics purposes visitors are classified as international visitors and
domestic visitors. If temporary visitor stays less than 24 hours in the
destination visited and not making an overnight stay, they are classified as excursionist.
WTO refers excursionist as same-day visitor.
Direct,
Indirect and Induced Effects of Tourism
Most
countries have recognized the economic significance of tourism across the
globe. Methodologies for evaluating the economic impacts of tourism have been
developed at the global level within the UNWTO, in the form of Tourism
Satellite Accounts (TSAs). Figure 1 shows the economic impacts or effects
created by tourism classified as direct, indirect and induced.
Direct
effects concern expenditure within the tourism sector, based on the list of
typical products drawn up by the UNWTO and the OECD (Vellas, 2011). It reflects
to GDP internal spending on travel and tourism (total spending within a
particular country on travel and tourism by residents and non-residents for
business and leisure purposes) as well as government individual spending
–spending by government on travel and tourism services directly linked to
visitors, such as cultural or recreational (WTTC, 2013). In addition, direct
impact is concerned with the amount of income (employment, output, etc.)
created in the front line tourist sectors as a direct result of a change in
tourist expenditure e.g wages, salaries, rent, and distributed profits in tour
companies, hotels and restaurants. The effect is also known as first round
effect and is confined to those sectors directly involved in providing of tourist
goods and services (Kamra, 2004). According to Weaver and Lawton (2006), the
prospect of substantial tourism-derived direct revenue has long been the most
compelling incentive for destinations to attract tourism activity.
The
economic impacts of tourist spending on a destination do not end once the
tourists have paid the products and services directly to the suppliers or
principals. Rather, indirect revenues continue to be generated by the
ongoing circulation of these expenditures within the economy of host
destination (Cooper et al. 2004). This multiplier effect has both an indirect
and induced component that come into play once the direct impact that is the
actual spending of money by the tourist, has taken place (Weaver & Lawton,
2006).
Direct Impacts
Figure 1: Direct, Indirect and Induced Effects of Tourism
Source:
Vellas (2011)
Indirect
effects concern intermediate consumption for the production of good and
services in the tourism sector. These are goods and services that tourism companies
purchase from their suppliers, forming the tourism supply chain. Indirect or
secondary effects mean that the money paid by tourists to businesses are in
turn used to pay for supplies, wages of workers and other items used in
producing the products or direct services bought by tourists (Cruz, 1990).
Indirect effects can be particularly important for the production of local
produced products and services. The so-called major tourism principals and
suppliers take the initial purchasing decisions that determine what visitors
can consume. For example, if a restaurant in Port Moresby decides to buy
locally produced vegetables wherever possible, the tourist will be the
originator of the purchase and of the production of goods and services in the
host country. It is therefore important to be able to encourage the tourism
sector to procure locally produced goods and services in order to maximise the
economic impact of tourism revenue in a country or region (Vellas, 2011).
Induced
contribution measures the GDP and jobs supported by the spending of those
who are directly and indirectly employed by the travel and tourism (WTTC, 2014).
Further, induced effects concern expenditure by employees from wages
paid by companies in direct contact with tourists. Induced effects also include
the consumption of companies that have benefited directly or indirectly from
initial expenditure in the tourism sector (Vellas, 2011). An example of such
induced effects would be purchase of consumer goods such as food and beverages,
clothing, housing, household goods and electronic goods by people employed
directly or directly by travel and tourism sector. For companies, this would be
purchases of capital goods or expenditure related to the reinvestment of
profits.
Economic
Aspect of Tourism
In
analysing the economic domain of tourism, the ambivalent nature of the sector
should be considered. Kamra (2011) believed that tourism development is like
the two blades of the scissor; on the one hand, it is identified as an economic
saviour while on the other, it is characterized as a pariah. This concept helps
the stakeholders assess whether the tourism development brings the destination
on the winning side or it compromises the sensitive natural environment and the
delicate social fabric of the local community. With this, more effective
strategies in planning, pervasive approach marketing accompanied by sensitive
mitigating measures need to be in place in dealing with tourism ambivalency.
Economic
impacts are important consideration in state, regional and community planning
and economic development. Affected communities need to understand the relative
importance of tourism in their region, including tourism’s contribution to
economic activity (Stynes, 1997). Community awareness about tourism’s role in
achieving economic prosperity elicits their participation in tourism
development.
The
tourism benefits to the national economy depend on the success of entrepreneurs
in developing tourism opportunities. The government provides a healthy business
platform whilst private sector determines the most viable tourism businesses,
initiate the operations and sustain these tourism businesses and activities. In
doing so, the benefits achieved by tourism development are felt at all levels,
ranging from the national, regional and local levels down to the firm and
individual levels through what might be called the trickle-down process
(Kastarlak & Barber, 2012).
Tourism
development has been seen as a driving force for regional development (Chen
& Tsai, 2006). It is initiated with much awaited economic gains. The more
visitors come, the more tourism expenditure will be accumulated. Successful
tourism can increase destination’s tourist receipts. This may sound logical
because tourists’ expenditure can enhance the host destination by bringing
wealth and catalysing income, employment, and enterprise and infrastructure
development. The destination may achieve identified economic objectives either
through scale economies (mass tourism) or system economies (quality tourism).
Conversely, the positive effects on employment and the generation of hard
currency produce some strong negative impacts like inflation, reduction of
quality of life since local residents need to compete with visitors for the
basic resources and utilities, hike in property prices, etc. In addition,
economic leakages may be formed due to the continuous patronizing of imported
items to meet foreign visitors’ standards and allowing multinational
corporations to conduct tourism related business activities.
Maximizing
the economic potential while minimizing the negative impacts of tourism has
been the major concern of planners and policy-makers in most countries where
tourism becomes the key player in the development process. The ambivalence of
tourism can be addressed by an effective tourism framework that will work from
the higher level to the grass root level.
Tourism
and Poverty Alleviation
“Where tourism advances, poverty retreats”-
Anonymous
This
famous quote unfolds the major contributions of tourism in combating poverty as
a global phenomenon and a perennial problem faced by low, middle and
high-income countries. Poverty is a fact of life for 2.5 billion people. In
most cases, the poor lack opportunity to access basic services like education,
primary health care, decent shelter and clean drinking water and a strong voice
to express their condition. This is tantamount to saying that the poor lack
tangible and intangible elements of well-being (Pearson, 2012).
According
to World Health Organization, poverty is often defined in absolute terms of low
income for people who subsist of less than US$2 a day in less developed
countries (LDCs) located mostly in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The gross
national product (GNP) of LDCs is less than 1% of the world GNP. Per capita
income (PCI) in LDCs is less than 5% of those found in developed countries that
are located mostly in North America and Western Europe.
To
have a substantial reduction of poverty, LDCs will need huge amounts of public
and private capital. This capital will be sourced out mainly in the form of
investments from private sources in wealthier countries and from international
financial institutions. The government essentially needs foreign and local
investors to promote sound economic activities, balance the payment and foster
sustainable development. In doing so, policies are put in place to provide
facilitative business environment to attract and maintain investors. Similarly,
policy makers critically identified industries that can bring long-term
economic reforms with the country’s available and abundant resources as capital
and at stake. Embracing the concept of sustainable development and the success
stories of how tourism drives the economy of wealthy countries, indeed, tourism
is at the forefront of all alternatives available.
Developing
regions have a strong case for promoting tourism in order to reduce poverty.
UNWTO is a sectoral advocacy organization that has been a strong proponent of
tourism’s contribution to poverty alleviation. UNWTO (2007) stated that tourism
is a key agent in the fight against poverty and a primary tool for sustainable
development. Although this statement has been argued and debated by several scholars
because of the concealed negative economic and socio-cultural implications of
tourism, many political and economic leaders preferred to redirect their growth
strategies towards tourism not only for economic advantage. Many countries not
only anticipate economic benefits from tourism but also seek cultural
acceptance and parity with the cultures of tourists in exchange for the
hospitality extended (Pearson, 2012).
They also provide considerations on the environmental significance of
tourism as one of the dimensions of sustainable development.
The economic contributions of tourism are undeniable and overwhelming
for those countries and regions that have experienced economic quantum leap and
witnessed the lucid impact of the industry. This economic twist showcases the
ability tourism as a growth strategy that can divert poverty to prosperity.
To educate host destinations on the strong features of tourism as
battling agent for poverty, UNWTO propagated the following special position
of tourism in poverty alleviation:
·
Tourism
generates foreign exchange earnings
·
Tourism
creates direct and indirect employment
·
Tourism
is the most viable for sustainable economic development option
·
Tourism
benefits the poorer groups through employment of local people in tourism enterprises,
goods and services provided to tourists and running of small and
community-based enterprises
·
Tourism
creates activity particularly relevant to poor countries and apparent to rural
communities like climate, cultural heritage, inspiring landscape and abundant
biodiversity.
·
Tourism product has a large and
diversified supply chain creating multiplier effect which can benefit a wide
range of sectors such as agriculture, handicrafts, transport and other services
through tourist’s expenditure.
·
Tourism is an activity which brings the
consumers to the producers. The interaction between tourists and host
communities can provide a number of intangible and practical advantages for
mutual benefits.
Poverty
as global phenomenon will remain as threat and continue to challenge humans’
survival and the quest for quality of life. Surmounting adverse repercussions
of poverty entails framework that deals with every element contributory to its
existence. The special position of tourism in poverty alleviation forwarded by
UNWTO should not be seen on its own as ‘the ultimate answer to the prayer’ of
eliminating poverty but it can make an influential contribution to the economy.
Tourism can form part of the framework but not necessarily the sole weapon to
combat poverty. It depends on policy makers, lead agencies and other concerned
stakeholders to work hand in hand to take effect viable approaches in a
favourable tourism environment to fulfil tourism objectives and realize
tangible benefits. The potential to develop more tourism and to channel a
higher percentage of tourism spending towards the poor may be great in some
areas and quite small in others (UNWTO). However, given the size of the sector,
even small changes in approach when widely applied can make a significant
difference.
Status
of Tourism Industry
World
Tourism
Tourism
is the key to development, economic prosperity and well being (UNWTO, 2013).
The magnitude of its implications reverberates not only to the economy but
envelopes the socio-cultural and environmental dimensions of the host
destination. Indeed, countries of varying status acknowledge the crucial role
of tourism in the sustainable development process. It was highlighted in the
UNWTO report for 2013 that over the years, an increase in the number of
destinations opening up and investing in tourism has been observed, turning
tourism into a key driver of socio-economic progress through export revenues,
the creation of jobs and enterprises, and infrastructure development.
In
the Tourism Highlights published by United Nations World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO, 2013), the following are the international tourism 2012 key trends and
outlook:
- International tourist
arrivals (overnight visitors) worldwide exceeded the 1 billion mark for
the first time ever in 2012, with, 1,035 million tourists crossing
borders, up from 995 million in 2011
- Asia and the Pacific
recorded the strongest growth with a 7% increase in arrivals, followed by
Africa (+6%) and the Americas (+5%).
- International tourist
arrivals in Europe, the most visited region in the world, were up by 3%.
The Middle East (-5%) has not yet succeeded in returning to growth.
- With a 4% increase in real
terms, the growth in international tourism receipts matched the growth in
arrivals.
- International tourism
receipts reached US$ 1,075 billion worldwide in2012, up from US$ 1,042
billion in 2011.
- China became the number
one source market in the world in 2012, spending US$ 102 billion on
international tourism.
- Forecasts prepared by
UNWTO in January 2013 point to growth of3% to 4% in international tourist
arrivals for 2013, only slightly below2012’s level and in line with
UNWTO’s long-term forecast.
- By UNWTO region, the Americas (+7%) recorded, for the second consecutive year, the largest increase in receipts, followed by Asia and the Pacific (+6%), Africa (+5%) and Europe (2%). Receipts in the Middle East were still down (-2%); yet with a clear recovery compared to the 14% decline registered in 2011. Prospects for 2013 are stronger for Asia and the Pacific, followed by Africa.
Table
1: International Tourist Arrival
Source:
United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
The
international trends and outlook of tourism for 2012 gives much optimism and
motivation for both advanced and emerging nations to realign programs and
economic strategies with tourism related projects to stay on track with the
global trends and flows. It encourages
destinations to engage in more aggressive marketing activities to expand market
base knowing that behaviour of travelling public has changed. This positive
outlook about travel and tourism is the result of customer sensitive and
well-planned programs and projects on tourism by different host destinations.
The global reforms on tourism have taught different countries to stay
competitive and proactive as a way forward to the dynamism of tourism sector.
It
has been noted that Asia and Pacific region is gaining prominence from the
travelling public. International tourists’ attention is now diverted to this
region giving hard competition to other tourism popular regions. The increase
in tourism receipts signals more vigorous tourism activities and continuous
expansion and diversification within the region. Competition amongst countries
is expected to tighten up and strategic marketing turn out to be the best
weapon for survival.
Table
2: International Tourism Receipts
|
|
International
Tourism Receipts
Local
currencies, Constant prices
Change
(%)
|
Market
Share
(%)
|
US $
|
Euro
|
|||||||||
|
Receipts
(billion) per arrival
|
Receipts
(billion) per arrival
|
||||||||||||
|
09/08
|
10/09
|
11/10
|
12/11
|
2012
|
2011
|
2012
|
2012
|
2011
|
2012
|
2012
|
|||
|
World
|
-5.5
|
5.5
|
4.7
|
4.0
|
100
|
1,042
|
1,075
|
1,040
|
749
|
837
|
810
|
||
|
Advanced
Economies
|
-6.4
|
5.8
|
5.9
|
4.3
|
64.1
|
672
|
689
|
1,250
|
482
|
536
|
970
|
||
|
Emerging
Economies
|
-3.8
|
4.9
|
2.8
|
3.6
|
35.9
|
371
|
386
|
800
|
266
|
300
|
620
|
||
|
By
UNWTO Regions
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
Europe
|
-6.3
|
0.1
|
5.2
|
2.3
|
42.6
|
466.7
|
457.8
|
860
|
335.3
|
356.3
|
670
|
||
|
N.Europe
|
-3.6
|
3.3
|
3.4
|
5.2
|
6.7
|
69.8
|
72.4
|
1,120
|
50.1
|
56.3
|
870
|
||
|
W.Europe
|
-6.6
|
1.3
|
4.3
|
3.0
|
14.6
|
161.6
|
157.0
|
940
|
116.1
|
122.2
|
730
|
||
|
C/E Europe
|
-8.0
|
-2.9
|
7.8
|
5.2
|
5.3
|
56.0
|
57.0
|
510
|
40.2
|
44.3
|
400
|
||
|
S/Med Eu.
|
-6.4
|
-1.3
|
6.0
|
-0.3
|
15.9
|
179.3
|
171.4
|
900
|
128.8
|
133.4
|
700
|
||
|
-of
w/c EU-27
|
-7.0
|
0.9
|
4.3
|
1.9
|
34.2
|
378.3
|
367.7
|
920
|
271.8
|
286.2
|
720
|
||
|
Asia
& Pacific
|
-0.7
|
15.4
|
8.0
|
6.2
|
30.1
|
298.6
|
323.9
|
1,390
|
214.5
|
252.1
|
1,080
|
||
|
N/E Asia
|
1.9
|
21.4
|
8.8
|
8.3
|
15.5
|
149.6
|
166.9
|
1,360
|
107.5
|
129.9
|
1,060
|
||
|
S/E Asia
|
-7.0
|
15.1
|
12.8
|
6.6
|
8.5
|
84.4
|
91.7
|
1,080
|
60.7
|
71.3
|
840
|
||
|
Oceania
|
4.2
|
-2.9
|
-5.7
|
-1.5
|
3.8
|
40.8
|
41.2
|
3,390
|
29.3
|
32.1
|
2,640
|
||
|
South Asia
|
-3.2
|
16.3
|
12.1
|
5.2
|
2.2
|
23.7
|
24.2
|
1,710
|
17.0
|
18.8
|
1,330
|
||
|
Americas
|
-10.2
|
4.4
|
5.0
|
5.9
|
19.8
|
197.9
|
212.6
|
1,300
|
142.2
|
165.5
|
1,010
|
||
|
N. America
|
-12.2
|
6.0
|
5.9
|
6.7
|
14.5
|
144.2
|
165.4
|
1,470
|
103.6
|
121.7
|
1,140
|
||
|
Caribbean
|
-8.0
|
1.3
|
-0.5
|
2.0
|
2.3
|
23.5
|
24.5
|
1,170
|
16.9
|
19.1
|
910
|
||
|
C. America
|
-6.5
|
1.1
|
0.7
|
8.9
|
0.7
|
7.1
|
8.0
|
900
|
5.1
|
6.2
|
700
|
||
|
S. America
|
0.0
|
-1.6
|
6.7
|
3.6
|
2.2
|
23.1
|
23.7
|
890
|
16.6
|
18.5
|
690
|
||
|
Africa
|
-5.5
|
2.3
|
1.6
|
5.8
|
3.1
|
32.7
|
33.6
|
640
|
23.5
|
26.1
|
500
|
||
|
N. Africa
|
-4.7
|
0.2
|
-5.5
|
2.4
|
0.9
|
9.6
|
9.4
|
510
|
6.9
|
7.3
|
390
|
||
|
Sub-Saharan
|
-5.9
|
3.5
|
4.9
|
7.2
|
2.3
|
23.1
|
24.2
|
720
|
16.6
|
18.9
|
560
|
||
|
Middle
East
|
1.2
|
17.2
|
-14.1
|
-2.0
|
4.4
|
46.4
|
47.0
|
900
|
33.4
|
36.6
|
700
|
||
Source:
United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
Scowsill
(2014), president and CEO of WTTC, positively provide the outlook for travel
and tourism in 2014. Accordingly, travel and tourism GDP growth forecast will
reach 4.3%. Much of this growth is being
driven by higher consumer spending as the recovery from recession gathers pace
and is becoming established. Similarly, tourists in 2014 are expected to spend
more per trip and stay longer on their holidays. In addition, WTTC (2014) made
a positive forecast that over the next ten years, travel and tourism will experience
growth rate of 4% annually that continue to be higher than growth rates in
other sectors. Higher disposable income, more educated travellers, political
accessibility for tourism by different countries, availability of fascinating
attractions from different destinations and the cheaper cost of products and
services from major tourism suppliers are the foreseen major factors for this
positive tourism outlook.
The
remarkable global trends in tourism particularly the uninterrupted increasing
number of international tourist arrival as shown from the table and forecasted
by UNWTO and WTTC connote the changing perception of people about tourism. One
factor is the cheaper cost of travel offered by major tourism principals like
airline companies, hotels and tour operators. The proliferation of the low cost
carriers, availability of cheaper accommodation facilities and affordable tour
packages expand the market share of the middle class and promotes social
tourism.
The
positive forecast and statistics provided by UNWTO and WTTC on the achievement
of tourism in the global arena simply proves that the industry carries
defensive mechanism to surmount challenges posed by various threats such as
global economic turbulence, international terrorism and climate change. This
can be attributed to the well-crafted tourism plans and programs initiated by
tourism global organizations and supported at the regional and national levels
to address pressing issues affecting tourism. With sustained effective
strategic planning at different levels, tourism’s burgeoning effects will carry
on.
Tourism
in the Pacific Region
Countries in the Pacific Island region host some of the
premier exotic tourist destinations in the world. Every year, more travellers
are becoming aware and enticed of the Pacific’s popular pull factors, its
unchartered pristine waters and thrilling Pacific hospitality. Despite
limitations in facilities to complement and support tourist activities, tourism
in the Pacific region contributed significant figure in the overall global
tourism growth.
Tourism
in the Pacific region has performed reasonably well during the five years
2008-2012 in spite of the challenges posed by the global financial crisis
(SPTO, 2012). The industry plays a very important economic sector as it
generates employment in many related sectors (from construction to agriculture
or telecommunications) and contributes to the overall economic growth (UNWTO,
2013). According to WTTC (2012), tourism contributed an estimated of 10.7% of
the regions Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and a total of 2.7% coming from
tourism direct, indirect and induced impacts to Pacific Island economies in
2012 (WTTC, Economic Impact 2013: Ocenia).
Table
3 shows the population, land area, visitor’s arrivals for 2011 and 2012 and the
contribution to GDP by the Pacific Island Countries. It can be gleaned from the
table that countries with bigger population and land area contributed the most
in terms of GDP. Population and land area are the two important attributes to
the growing economy of bigger countries. These are the treated as strengths and
major resources of most countries. In terms of tourism, Fiji receives the
greater number of visitors than PNG albeit the decrease of -2.14 in 2012
tourist arrival. However, Cook Islands, Vanuatu, Samoa and New Caledonia are
promising tourism hubs in the Pacific region. Despite their sizes, these small
nations have gained prominence from international visitors looking for a unique
island experience which is quite different from what other developed countries
can offer. The increase in visitors’ arrival may have been influenced by the
government effort to develop tourism sector by means of providing
superstructures like hotels, restaurants, resorts, etc., improving
infrastructural condition, engaging in aggressive marketing campaign and
developing more appealing tourism products.
Table
3: PIC’s Population, Land Area, Visitor’sArrival&Contribution to GDP
|
Pacific
Island Nations
|
Population
(2012
est)
|
Land
Area
(sq.kms.)
|
GDP
(USD
est)
|
2011
Arrivals
|
2012
(Provisional)
|
%
Change
(2012/2011)
|
|
Cook
Islands
|
11,870
|
236
|
183m
|
122,446
|
121,634
|
-0.66
|
|
Fiji
|
944,700
|
18,274
|
4.3b
|
675,050
|
660,590
|
-2.14
|
|
FSM
|
106,104
|
702
|
310m
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Kiribati
|
112,850
|
811
|
624m
|
5,256
|
4,907
|
-6.6
|
|
Marshall
Islands
|
69,747
|
181
|
171m
|
4,559
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Nauru
|
14,019
|
21
|
60m
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
New
Caledonia
|
264,022
|
18,575
|
9.3b
|
111,875
|
112,204
|
0.29
|
|
Niue
|
1,269
|
260
|
10m
|
6,094
|
5,048
|
-17.1
|
|
Palau
|
21,102
|
459
|
221m
|
109,057
|
118,754
|
8.9
|
|
PNG
|
5,940,775
|
452,860
|
18.5b
|
163,173
|
167,149
|
2.4
|
|
Samoa
|
219,998
|
2,821
|
1.1b
|
127,420
|
134,660
|
5.7
|
|
Solomon
Islands
|
595,613
|
27,986
|
1.9b
|
22,941
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Tahiti
|
287,032
|
3,827
|
5.7b
|
162,776
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Timor
Leste
|
1,172,390
|
14,874
|
10.6b
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Tonga
|
120,898
|
717
|
786m
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Tuvalu
|
12,373
|
26
|
37m
|
1,201
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Vanuatu
|
218,519
|
12,189
|
1.2b
|
97,180
|
108,145
|
11.3
|
|
TOTAL
|
|
|
|
1,529,597
|
1,598,984
|
13.9
|
Source:
South Pacific Tourism Organization
As
reflected from Table 4, the Pacific region received an approximately of 1.6
million tourist arrival in 2012 with an increase of 14% from 2011 statistics.
With the available data, Fiji, PNG, Samoa, Cook Islands and New Caledonia are
the top destinations. Interestingly, Fiji has an impressing figure with 41.3%
market share as compared to PNG, the biggest nation in terms of population and
land area, with only 10.4% market share.
Comparatively, Fiji is as big as Milne Bay, a province in PNG, in terms
of size but the way they manage tourism should be something that other
countries in the Pacific emulate particularly PNG. This statistics serve as an
eye opener and pose a big challenge to PNG tourism planners and developers on
how to bring robust competition with Fiji in terms of tourism considering the
advantages in resources the country has. There are several factors affecting
the huge disparity of tourism statistics between Fiji and PNG. These are issues
on security, community’s tourism preparedness, infrastructure, cost, political
accessibility, product diversity and marketing propagandas. Dwelling and
addressing these issues will create a big twist in the destination image of
PNG, thus, increase influx of international tourist and rise on tourism
receipts are likely to occur.
Table 4: Top Destinations 2012
|
Country
|
2012
|
Market
Share 2012
|
|
Fiji
|
660,590
|
41.3%
|
|
Papua
New Guinea
|
163,173
|
10.4%
|
|
Samoa
|
134,660
|
8.4%
|
|
Cook
Islands
|
121,634
|
7.6&
|
|
New
Caledonia
|
112,204
|
7&
|
Source: South Pacific Tourism Organization
Table
5: Tourism: Employment Contribution in Selected Forum Island Countries FICs)
|
Country
|
Numbers
|
Total
Employment (%)
|
||
|
2011
|
2012
|
2011
|
2012
|
|
|
Fiji
|
38,500
|
39,500
|
11.7
|
11.7
|
|
Kiribati
|
1,500
|
2,000
|
6.2
|
7.6
|
|
Papua
New Guinea
|
20,500
|
29,500
|
0.8
|
1.1
|
|
Solomon
Islands
|
4,500
|
8,500
|
4.5
|
4.4
|
|
Tonga
|
1,500
|
1,500
|
4.1
|
4.8
|
|
Vanuatu
|
11,000
|
N/A
|
16.4
|
N/A
|
Source:
Source: South Pacific Tourism Organization
The
raw beauty of the country, amazing geography, richly diverse cultural heritage
and hospitality of the people resemble the PNG’s wealth and major
contributories in boosting national economy. These fascinating resources can be
transformed into products that draw visitors of different interests to come and
see for themselves the innate beauty of the country. For adventure travellers,
cultural tourists and nature lovers, PNG is an indeed tourist’s paradise.
A
formal visit to this paradise nation was recorded in 1884 when Burns Philips
first promoted tours to the islands of Papua New Guinea. Cruise ships regularly
visited the country and an increase in tourist arrival was noted until 1980. In
2005, 121 years after Philips’ first visit, number of visitors’ arrival remains
a trickle despite some recovery since the collapse of the early 1980s due to
Bouganville crisis. Accordingly, tourism was neglected after independence in
1974 where emphasis was laid on the resource extraction to stimulate economy.
Thus, a formal structure and system has been established to cater to the needs
of an increasing number of visitors in the country even before the inception of
the National Tourism Office in PNG. The National Tourism Office is responsible
for the promotion of the tourism in a particular country and for the overall
development of the tourist industry.
The
PNG Tourism Promotion Authority was established pursuant to the Tourism
Promotion Authority Act of 1993 replacing the Tourism Development Corporation
under the Department of Culture and Tourism. The function of the Authority is
to foster the development of tourism in Papua New Guinea so as to maximize the
economic benefits of the industry to Papua New Guinea whilst minimizing any
disruption to society, culture and the environment. PNG Tourism Promotion
Authority being the lead organization to oversee tourism activities in the
country is also responsible in adhering to the concept of sustainable tourism
development in the country. The Authority also provides tourism statistics
needed for planning and policy making at the national, regional and
international levels.
Tourism
in PNG has been experiencing a roller coaster ride from the very outset where
the country started recording essential tourism statistics to assess tourism
development. In one of the reports submitted by the University of Hawaii,
during the 1979-1987 period, there has been no consistent pattern of growth.
The number of international arrivals has fluctuated, from a low of 30,400 in
1985 to a high of 38,800 in 1979. In 1986 and 1987 increases of 5.0% and 9.6%
respectively were recorded as government initiated marketing and promotion
activities to augment industry programs. Same pattern on tourism statistics has
been observed from 1995 to 2005.
In
2007, PNG TPA launched the Tourism Master Plan that covers a ten-year
(2007-2017) plan of the Authority to further develop tourism in the country.
Carrying the theme, “Growing PNG Tourism as a Sustainable Industry”, is
recognition and optimistic outlook that tourism offers a sustainable
alternative to the traditional resource based industries in PNG like mining and
petroleum. TPA supports that tourism investment brings long-term economic,
social and environmental welfare to the country. This “triple bottom line” concept and
approach to development of the tourism sector represents the key principle
underpinning the tourism master plan. The overall goal is to:
“Increase the overall economic value of tourism to the nation by
doubling the number of tourists on holiday in PNG every five years and
maximizing sustainable tourism growth for the social and environmental benefit
for all Papua New Guineans”.
With
the vision and overall goal are the expected potential and measurable benefits
that serve as ultimate objectives in crafting and implementing the Tourism
Master Plan.
- Tourism would be worth K1.1 billion by 2012 and
K1.78 billion in revenue terms by 2015.
- Those on holiday would spend K363 million in
2010 and K727 million in 2015; and
- Total employment in tourism would increase by
4,800 jobs by 2010 and 13,000 by 2015
As part of the tourism planning and development strategy of the government, five model provinces have been identified. In 2007, the PNGTPA launched Model Province Five Year plans for New Ireland, East New Britain, Milne Bay, Madang and Eastern Highlands. The manner in which these provinces have been identified can be attributed to the existing tourism industry in the provincial level (supply and demand) and the strong political will in developing tourism manifested by the provincial government.
The
tourism planning approach made by PNGTPA in prioritizing five model provinces
for development may have not been accepted by other government officials and
stakeholders who are supporters of the concept that tourism development should
be spread all throughout the nation so that everybody reaps the benefits of it
and that tourism is inherently good and that it should be developed no matter what.
However,
the strategic approach in planning and developing tourism sector that has been
contained in Tourism Master Plan stemmed considerable results particularly in
visitors’ arrival. Tourism statistics proves that substantial and consistent
growth in visitor arrival continues from 2006 to 2013. The healthy holiday
arrivals trend was a result of the collaboration, partnership and strong
alliance of PNG TPA with the industry’s key stakeholders responding positively
by working together in the markets and making it conducive through awareness
and more product developments in the model provinces (TPA Visitor Arrival
Report, 2013).
Figure
2: Annual Visitor Arrivals Trend, 1995-2013 (Source: TPA)
Despite
the global economic turbulence, 2013 was a successful year because of the
accumulated 8% increase in the international visitors’ arrival from 2012. The
recorded 175,203 visitors in 2012 increased to 182, 188 in 2013.This repeated
healthy trends have been seen for the last seven years and still projected to
continue in the next 10 years with anticipation that tourism will be a
significant contributor to the national economy (TPA, 2014). TPA attributed
this progress to their set clear long-term tourism plans to grow the tourism
industry in Papua New Guinea.
Figure
3 reflects the purpose of visit in PNG by international tourists. Most
stakeholders share communal interpretations that the multi-billion kina
liquefied natural gas (LNG) project impacted other sectors particularly tourism
and hospitality. More lodging facilities were constructed to accommodate
imported workforce and full house flight of Air Niugini has been experienced to
cater to different inbound travellers who come to PNG for mainly business
purposes (35%). Interestingly, TPA included employment as a purpose of visit
with 32% and ranks second, which puts the credibility of the visitor arrivals
report prepared by the PNGTPA to scrutiny and questioning. This has been
debated because UNWTO and World Bank do not classify employment as a purpose of
visit related to tourism. On the other hand, 23% of visitors come to PNG for
holiday purposes, 5% to visit friends and relatives, 2% for education and MICE
(meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) purposes and 1% for other
reasons.
Figure
3: Purpose of Visit
In
terms of foreign visitors’ expenditure, a consistent and progressive trend was
recorded from 2005 to 2013.This can be correlated to the increasing number of
visitors recorded on the same years. One significant contributing factor is the
tourism product development and diversification attracting a niche market of
special interest tourists that extends their length of stay compared to mass
tourists. Foreign visitors’ expenditure provides direct, indirect and induced
benefits and impacts to the economy of the host country. Lead agencies and
private sector should venture on other strategies to achieve a more substantial
increase in visitors’ expenditure every year.
Figure
4: Estimated Visitor Expenditure Incurred by International Visitors, 2005-2013 (Source:
TPA)
Travel
is inseparable with tourism. It is the dynamic element of tourism that refers
to the journey of the tourists, therefore, tourism cannot stand on its own.
Transportation sector plays an integral role in making travel a rewarding
journey (Cruz, 2000).
Travel
and tourism is an important economic activity in most countries across the
globe. The industry creates direct economic impact and significant indirect and
induced impacts. The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) is a global
private organization with members from different tourism organizations that
looks into the development of travel and tourism within the global arena. WTTC
provides the travel and tourism Economic Impact Report 2014 for Papua New
Guinea. The succeeding discussions are extracted from the Report of WTTC.
Direct
Contributions
The direct contribution of travel and tourism to
GDP in 2013 was PGK369.5mn (1.0% of GDP). This is forecast to rise by 4.5% to
PGK386.1mn in 2014.This primarily reflects the economic activity generated by
industries such as hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger
transportation services (excluding commuter services). But it also includes,
for example, the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries directly
supported by tourists. The direct contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP
is expected to grow by 4.3% pa to PGK589.1mn (1.0% of GDP) by 2024.
The total contribution of travel and tourism to GDP
(including wider effects from investment, the supply chain and induced income
impacts) was PGK901.3mn in 2013 (2.5% of GDP) and is expected to grow by 5.5%
to PGK951.2mn (2.5% of GDP) in 2014.
Travel and tourism generated 24,000 jobs directly
in 2013 (0.8% of total employment) and this is forecast to grow by 2.2% in 2014
to 24,500 (0.8% of total employment). This includes employment by hotels,
travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services (excluding
commuter services). It also includes, for example, the activities of the
restaurant and leisure industries directly supported by tourists.
By 2024, travel and tourism will account for 30,000
jobs directly, an increase of 2.0% pa over the next ten years.
The total contribution of travel and tourism to
employment (including wider effects from investment, the supply chain and
induced income impacts) was 62,500 jobs in 2013 (2.1% of total employment).
This is forecast to rise by 3.2% in 2014 to 64,500 jobs (2.1% of total
employment).
By 2024, travel and tourism is forecast to support
75,000 jobs (1.9% of total employment), an increase of 1.5% pa over the period.
Visitors Export
Tourism is an invisible export. Host destinations
generate foreign currency from the expenditures of international visitors who
come and spend time Visitor exports are a key component of the direct
contribution of Travel & Tourism. In 2013, Papua New Guinea generated
PGK6.8mn in visitor exports. In 2014, this is expected to grow by 5.0%, and the
country is expected to attract 187,000 international tourist arrivals. By 2024,
international tourist arrivals are forecast to total 239,000, generating
expenditure of PGK9.8 million, an increase of 3.3% pa
Investment
Travel & Tourism is expected to have attracted
capital investment of PGK271.3mn in 2013. This is expected to rise by 13.9% in
2014, and rise by 4.2% pa over the next ten years to PGK466.1mn in 2024. Travel
& Tourism’s share of total national investment will fall from 5.8% in 2014
to 5.1% in 2024. Interestingly, tourism investment is projected to climb over
the next ten years.
This forecast depends on the ability of the
national government to come up and sustain sound fiscal and monetary policies
that will not discourage and erode investors. Foreign investment in Papua New Guinea is facilitated,
regulated and monitored by the Investment Promotion Act and is subject to
guarantees under the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and other
international agreements (PNGTPA)
Key
Trends and Developments in Papua New Guinea Tourism Industry
PNG Tourism Promotion Authority has identified recent
developments in tourism and hospitality industry in Papua New Guinea. The
increase of business tourists coming to PNG has given the accommodation sector
business advantages. It has been observed that there are refurbishments of
several well-known hotels in Port Moresby. The Airways Hotel, an airport hotel,
is adding 63 new suites and providing retail space, a day spa, coffee shops and
conference facilities. Gateway and Ela Beach hotels have indicated plans for
expansions whilst Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotels have already invested
US$50 million for improvement.
The increasing demand for quality accommodation rooms in
Port Moresby has resulted to shortage of supply. The two largest chains of
hotels in the country, Kumul Group and Coral Seas Hotel Group, constructed
additional accommodation facilities to meet the demand. Kumul Group which owns the existing Corwne
Plaza and Holiday Inn complexes will be erecting a luxury hotel. The Coral Seas
Hotel Group, which operates the largest chain of hotels in Papua New Guinea,
has a 12-storey complex under construction in Port Moresby to add to Coral
Seas’ growing chain. Coral Seas’ new complex on Mary Street combines
residential and short-term apartment accommodation. The combination of short-
and long-term accommodation is also favoured by the developers of the
Kingfisher Apartments and Reef Apartments.
These accommodation developments are not only concentrated
in the capital city of PNG.
Major cities like Madang, Kokopo and Lae also have new hotels under construction or existing ones undergoing expansion to add new rooms and apartments.
Major cities like Madang, Kokopo and Lae also have new hotels under construction or existing ones undergoing expansion to add new rooms and apartments.
The growth in the accommodation industry has spread the
sunlight to other important components of hospitality sector- food and beverage
and entertainment. The number of restaurants offering international cuisines,
coffee shops, kai bars, cafeterias and catering companies has increased for the
past three years. It does not only benefit tourists but also local residents
within the city having several choices to consider in dining. The creation of
the biggest mall in the country, Vision City, introduces a new face of
entertainment to Papua New Guineans. The state of the art cinema houses and
world-class club entice international visitors and create a good platform to
develop domestic tourism.
Tourism and the Vision 2050
According to PNG Tourism Promotion Authority website (2014),
Papua New Guinea’s Vision 2050 and the Medium Term Development Plan (MTDP)
2011-2015 sees tourism rising to become a significant driver of the economy. In
support to the country’s strategic plans, the government offers tax incentives
such as double deductions for costs associated with export market development,
and double deductions for tourism staff training costs. Another form of tax
incentive to be offered is accelerated depreciation whereby capital investment
in eligible tourism facilities qualifies for 55% increased initial-year
depreciation. Tourism investors in large-scale accommodation facilities may be
eligible for a concessional tax rate of 20%.
“We leaders and people must know where we want
to go before we can decide how we should get there. Before a driver starts a
motor car, he should first decide on his destination. Otherwise his driving
will be without purpose, and he will achieve nothing. We Papua New Guineans are
now in the driving seat. The road which we should follow ought to be marked out
so that all will know the way ahead” (Constitutional Planning Committee
(CPC) Report 1974, Chapter 2, Section 4)
The above quote was made in
1974 by the Constitutional Planning Committee, and after three decades of
political independence, the Somare government took the courage to stand back,
reflect and took stock on what the young nation of Papua New Guinea has
achieved and how to stage a new path for the future. In December of 2008, the
government tasked the National Planning Committee with the task of coming up
with a visionary development strategy to guide the country’s economic
development.
Papua New Guinea under its Vision 2050 has a huge challenge
ahead in terms of meeting the objectives of its seven strategic focus areas,
referred to as seven pillars. The seven strategic focus areas are:
·
Human
Capital Development, Gender, Youth and People Empowerment;
·
Wealth
Creation
·
Institutional
Development and Services Delivery
·
Security
and International Relations
·
Environmental
Sustainability and Climate Change
·
Spiritual,
Cultural and Community Development; and
·
Strategic
Planning Integration and Control
Of these seven pillars, the tourism sector is aligned under
the wealth creation pillar which has three main objectives. If aligned together
with the objectives of the other six pillars such as pillar one- Human Capital
Development, Gender, Youth and People Empowerment can contribute meaningfully
to the sustainability of the economic developments of PNG under its medium and
long term development strategies of this country.
Pillar two of Vision 2050 focuses on wealth creation, natural
resources and growth nodes with emphasis on a healthy, educated and a skilled
population. Objectives under wealth creation focused on agricultures, forestry,
fisheries, and tourism. Under tourism, the three main objectives under point
1.17.4.4 of the Vision 2050 documents are:
·
Register
all terrestrial and marine resources as incorporated group for tourism;
·
Introduce
a tourism and hospitality curriculum in high schools, secondary schools and
national high schools; and
·
Employ
attractive, aggressive marketing and promotion of Papua New Guinea, as a
preferred tourist destination.
Tourism as an industry has the potential to bring into the
country substantial foreign capital reserves plus other economic benefits if the
tourism products are developed, diversified and managed properly. Promotion is
also an important consideration to capitalize tourism benefits. Tourism
products need to be promoted globally through effective marketing strategies
due to the evolving demands in certain areas that only PNG can provide through
the vast potentials the country has in term of its living cultures, natural
resources, pristine environment, unique landscapes and untouched marine
environment.
The government plans to ensure the marine, plant, culture
and natural biodiversity must be managed in a sustainable way to enable the
growth of the industry and the government has ensured that such activities as financial
literacy programs, improve business environment, provide management training
and financial literacy skills are rolled out and implemented effectively by the
agencies of the government and important stakeholders.
Tourism and the Medium Term Development Plan
In alignment with the Vision 2050, is the Medium Term
Development Plan 2011 – 2015, (MTDP). The MTDP as a substance of Vision 2050
maps out the planning for strategic areas and how these can be attained by
2030. According to the document, the MTDP is the map for our nation and in line
with the Vision 2050 focus on attaining prosperity for the people of this
nation.
Part 4.9 of the Medium Term Development Plan focuses on Tourism
with the main objectives:
“Increase the overall economic
value of tourism to the nation by doubling the number of tourists on holiday in
PNG every five years and maximizing the sustainable growth for the social and
environmental benefits of Papua New Guineans”.
Under the medium term development plan, tourism has been
identified as one of the fastest growing industries worldwide, which continues
to play a major role in increasing the wealth of nations as well as the
opportunity to increase the country’s economic base and expanding its foreign
exchange through inbound tourists and visitors.
To achieve economic goals, there is a need for involvement and
commitment to the goal by Papua New Guineans whereby the benefits should be
felt at all sectors of the economy.
Capabilities of achieving economic goals through the tourism
sector are;
- Providing
significant employment throughout PNG
- Developing
income generation opportunities, leading to a reduction in poverty level
and reduction in law and order problems
- Development
of Rural economies reduce urban migration
- Providing
a sustainable alternative which contributes to the management and
preservation of our country’s natural resources
- Reinforcement
of the country’s unique culture and handicrafts, which are tourism assets
in their own rights
- Supporting
the development of linked economic activities such as agriculture and
fishing and other services which support tourism
- Provide
a major source of direct and indirect tax revenue for the government to
support the delivery of social services which support tourism.
Under the Vision 2050 and the Medium Term Development Plans
2011 - 2015, the government is faced with immense challenges facing its
economic and development strategies. To
attain desired results from tourism, the following impediments to tourism
developments identified by PNG TPA should be addressed:
·
Inadequate
domestic transport infrastructure and other support services
·
Limited
supply of market-ready, quality tourism businesses to meet current demand
·
Insufficient
human resource capacity to meet existing or future needs
·
Inadequate
“whole of government” approach to tourism development
·
Institutional
and regulatory barriers to generating new tourism investments that capitalise
on PNG’s raw assets and market potential
·
Limited
market knowledge of PNG tourism
·
Limited
access to finance for tourism SMEs
·
Limited
engagement of local communities in the travel and tourism economy
·
Inadequate
supply and high cost of travelling in PNG
·
Bad
media publicity
·
Law
and Order problems
Another important factor that may contribute to the
successful implementation of the focus areas noted under Vision 2050 is for the
alignment and operationalization of government policies to address
cross-cutting issues such resource allocations, institutional policies,
financial resources.
In line with the Vision 2050 strategic plans, tourism can be
a major catalyst for economic growth on par with other industries within the
economic sectors. This is being recognized by the government given the
following:
·
Tourism studies are now being taught in
most secondary schools in Papua New Guinea as well as in the higher tertiary
institutions such as the University of PNG and the Divine Word University. The
output results would be a gradual increase in small scale development of
tourism products and activities as well as niche tourist products.
·
The government through the PNG Tourism
Promotion Authority has identified five model tourist provinces which show the
seriousness by the government in making this industry an important catalyst for
economic development. The success depends on how the stakeholders address some
of the challenges mentioned in this paper.
·
PNG has competitive advantages over
other countries when it comes to tourism products given the thousands living
cultures which can be turned into niche tourist products. The potentials to
develop our war tracks and relics for historical tourist products, pristine and
untouched landscapes and waterways targeting adventure tourist products, bird
watching and many more, which is an advantage for the industry to develop
further.
Finally the important factor is the tourism marketing
which has to be aggressively pursued with the right strategy. The current
marketing strategy can be improved further using the four marketing Ps
effectively and with the combine support of all industry stakeholders in term
of resources and channel distributions.
Conclusion
This research affirms that tourism is recognized as
one of the world’s largest and fast-growing industries that create overwhelming
economic impacts. The increasing number of international and domestic visitors
and tourism investments resulted to a higher volume of income and employment
generated. Tourist expenditures generated tourism receipts that reverberate
across tourism and other indirectly related sectors. It has been recorded that
for several years, healthy travel and tourism trends are observed whilst the
current projections manifested more vigorous tourism developments. Clinging to
these tourism patterns, global, regional and national tourism reforms are
expected to meet the ever changing nature of this sector. Destinations will
come up with diversified tourist products and effective marketing strategies as
critical components of their overall tourism plans to achieve competitive
advantage. All these efforts are geared towards their ultimate desire to reap
the maximum economic benefits of tourism and making this sector as a catalyst
of economic growth and a strong agent to alleviate poverty.
In the Pacific region, Papua New Guinea emerged to
be an interesting destination for travelers looking for exotic experiences
through its magnificent natural resources and highly diverse culture. PNG is
competing with neighboring countries that offer same products and experience to
international visitors. The current set-up due to tight competition does not
push tourism to elevate to the next level. Tourism in PNG remains to be in a
fledgling stage keeping the status quo for several years. The increase in
international visitors’ arrival and tourism receipts compared with what other
Pacific islands nations have achieved is quite alarming given the resources
available in PNG. With this scenario, the country will not be able to maximize
the full potential of tourism in terms of its economic contributions and other
inherent benefits to society and environment.
The aspirations of Papua New Guineans stated in PNG
Vision 2050 reflect the people’s desire to be part of an ideal society. The PNG
Vision 2050 and the Medium Term Development Plan if successfully implemented is
expected to turn the wheel of the country in terms of economic strategies and
approaches for sustainable development. Under these strategic plans, government
identified tourism as one of the sectors that will drive the nation to a
healthy economy. This is an indication that the government realizes the value
of developing tourism as an important economic sector learned from other
countries that experienced road to economic prosperity with tourism as an
integral part of their growth strategies.
To successfully execute these plans, government and
other concerned stakeholders need to have strategic alliance and partnership
that will help Papua New Guineans achieve their aspirations. The
multi-dimensional nature of tourism requires other sectors to share
responsibilities is developing the industry. The government should have strong
political will in genuinely instigating changes within the tourism sector. A
tourism government body with regulatory functions will be crucial in the
transformation process. In this sense, tourism operations will be regulated,
standardized and in accordance with the expectations of international visitors.
Other important areas to consider are tourism product diversification and more
effective marketing strategies. This will eventually give additional reasons
for tourists to pick PNG as their destination giving a tight competition with neighboring
countries in the South Pacific.
Several literatures have identified the tourism
impediments in PNG and yet there are no effective plans of addressing these
perennial challenges. If PNG government is serious in pushing tourism to be a
wealth creator and growth strategy, these impediments need to be resolved.
Otherwise, they will block the process and hinder the fulfilment of economic
objectives. One major issue is the attitude of the people towards tourism. Most
of them preferred the development of extractive resource industries like mining
and petroleum because of the immediate economic gain. Lack of knowledge and
appreciation of tourism are seen as factors influencing their attitude.
However, tourism awareness is the basic approach to educate people on the long
term benefits and prospects of developing tourism. It will also encourage
support and participation of the local communities in tourism development.
Rayel (2012) emphasized that local people are the resource owners and tourism
should be sensitive to their needs ensure sustainable development. Thus,
success of every tourism project that is expected to bring the real paradise in
Papua New Guinea is on their very hands.
References
Constitutional Planning Committee Report (1974)
Cooper, Cherrie (1997). Residents’ perceptions of tourism development: the case of Raglan, New Zealand. Published Tourism Study. The University of Waikato Management School, Hamilton.
Cruz, Z. (1999). Principles of tourism: Part 1, Rex Bookstore, Inc. Manila, Philippines
Kamra, K. (2004). Economics of tourism: Pricing, impacts and forecasting, Kanishka Publishers, Distributors, New Delhi, India
Kastarlak, B. & Barber, Brian, (2011). Fundamentals of Planning and Developing Tourism, Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd., Jurong, Singapore
Lumsdon, L. (1997). Tourism Marketing, International Thomson Business Press, United Kingdom
Milne, S. (2005). The economic impact of tourism in South Pacific Tourism Organization (SPTO) member countries: Final Report. Retrieved May 21, 2014 from http://www.nztri.org/Economic-Impact-Study-of-Tourism-in-the-Pacific-region
Mirbabayev, B. & Shagazatova, M. (ND). The economic and social impact of tourism Retrieved May 24, 2014 from http://www.grips.ac.jp/alumni/UzbekistanTourism%282%29.pdf
Negi, J. (2005). Travel agency operations: Concepts and principles, Kanishka Publishers Distributions, New Delhi
Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (2013). Promoting sustainable development in large ocean states, tourism as a pillar of economic growth. Retrieved May 21, 2014 from http://www.forum.sec.org_resources
Papua New Guinea Medium Term Development Plan (2010), Department of National Planning and Monitoring
Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority (2006). Papua New Guinea Tourism Sector Review and Master Plan (2007-2017), “Growing PNG Tourism as a Sustainable Industry”
Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority (2011), Model Province Five Year Tourism Plans
Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority (2013), Visitors Arrival Report 2013
Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority Tourism Awareness Guidebook
Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority website http://www.tpa.papuanewguinea.travel/investment-opportunities
Papua New Guinea Vision 2050 (2009), Government Printing Office, Papua New Guinea
Rayel, J.J. (2012). Local community involvement in trekking and residents’ perceptions of implications of tourism and the proposed mining operations: A case of Kokoda Track, Papua New Guinea. TEAM Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 9(1), 27-38.
School of Travel Industry Management, University of Hawaii (1990). Tourism development in Papua New Guinea. Retrieved May 12, 2014 from http://www.tim.hawaii.edu/ctps/papuanewguinea1990_executivesummary.pdf
Stynes, D (1997). Economic Impacts of Tourism (Retrieved from http://www.tourism.umn.edu/ResearchReports/TourismIndustry/EconomicImpact/index.htm)
United Nation World Tourism Organization Tourism Highlights 2013 Edition
Vellas, F. (2011). The indirect impact of tourism: An economic analysis, third meeting of T20 tourism ministers, Paris, France
Weaver, D. & Lawton, L. (2006), Tourism Management: Third Edition, John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd., Queensland, Australia.
World Travel and Tourism Council (2014). Travel and Tourism Economic Impact for Papua New Guinea
No comments:
Post a Comment