Benefits Of Tourism To The Local Communities

Tourism has always played an active role in the lives of those near tourist attractions bringing either negative or positive effects on them. On the negative side it has contributed to the increase of prostitution and gender based exploitation especially on women and young girls. Girls have been forced to drop out by their parents so that they join the lucrative business of prostitution. Also, as a result of cultural interaction some undesirable aspects of cultures have rubbed off onto the locals as they mingle with one another.
Another disadvantage is that as a result of tourists frequenting these places, other dealers have disguised themselves as tourists with the intention of spoiling the youth by selling drugs to them rendering them useless members of the communities. The immigration police sometimes find it hard to arrest these people since they often pose as tourists who bring foreign exchange into the country.
Despite these disadvantages, there are many advantages as a consequence of booming tourism especially benefiting the local people. These are for example:
Since these lodges, game parks, camps require labor enforcements, to run them; the local people are employed and trained. This therefore uplifts their standards of living ensuring that their families have decent houses, education and also food.
The biggest benefit to these workers and restaurant owners is that because of interaction with holiday makers some of whom are very influential people in the country, they are exposed to a lot of information, business opportunities and ideas with some of these workers going out to venture into their own businesses later on. The staff after saving their income go ahead to open their own lodges managing their own tour companies and camp sites.
In Kenya because of serious environmental degradation, the camp sites towards their co-operate social responsibility, have started projects that help in conserving the environment. A good example is the Campi Ya Kanzi which would mean, The Camp For Hidden Treasures in Kiswahili. They have taught the local people on how to use lava rocks for construction of houses instead of mud that would otherwise contribute to soil erosion. To prepare meals, the lodge began using dung constricted in maize cobs as fuel instead of chopping trees or using firewood.
Campi Ya Kanzi is also known by the locals for starting a Bio- gas initiative in which the locals have also adopted to. The dung is collected and conserved then converted into fuel. This has greatly benefited the community people in conserving their environment.
The Nairobi National park is best known for engaging the locals in garbage collection events especially those living in the informal settlements. The locals are involved in these projects that clean the area surrounding the park as well as the area that they dwell in.
Among the benefits of tourism to the local communities is that as a result of booming tourism, the area grows opening it up to many opportunities that will create more and more job opportunities for the locals to apply for.
With time Kenyans should find other ventures that greatly contribute towards tourism and not just sandy beaches and wildlife.

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