Routledge Handbook of Tourism in Africa by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Business & Finance, Industries & Professions, Hospitality; Tourism & Travel, Nonfiction, Travel, Africa, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science
ISBN: 9781351022521
Publisher: Taylor and Francis
Published: 2020-11-29T05:00:00+00:00

Figure 14.1 illustrates the hypothesised model of this study.

Figure 14.1 Hypothesised model of resident’s perceptions, trust and support for tourism development

Source: Author.

Methodology

Study setting

The Republic of Cape Verde is a small island developing state (SIDS) with ten islands (Santo Antão, São Vicente, Santa Luzia, São Nicolau, Sal, Boa Vista, Maio, Santiago, Fogo and Brava) located in the Atlantic Ocean, roughly 550 km off the coast of Western Africa. The Archipelago was discovered and colonised by the Portuguese in 1460–1462 and became a useful point in the Atlantic slave trade to the Caribbean and America. The islands were first populated by European settlers and African slaves in late 1400 and remained a Portuguese Colony until 1975. Recurrent droughts over the second half of the 20th century have brought on massive emigration to the United States, São Tome and Principe, Portugal, France and Angola. For this reason, Cape Verdeans living abroad outnumber those residents living on-island (Åkesson, 2011; Carling, 2014). Currently, the country has an estimated population of 550,000 people across the nine inhabited islands (National Institute of Statistics [NIS], 2019). The white and black sandy beaches, volcanic mountains, and diverse flora and fauna make Cape Verde an attractive and exotic destination for visitors interested in relaxing, arts, culture, and different sports. The economy of Cape Verde is service-oriented, accounting for more than 75% of GDP, with tourism being responsible for 65% of the sector (Bank of Cape Verde, 2019).

Throughout the last 20 years, Cape Verde has received a significant number of international tourists, growing from 145,000 arrivals in 2000 to 765,696 in 2018 (NIS, 2019). Traditionally, tourists are mainly from European countries, such as the United Kingdom (22.7%), Germany (11.8%), France (10.1%), Netherlands/Belgium (10.0%), Portugal (9.3%) and Italy (4.0%) (NIS, 2019). Throughout the years, several Governments of Cape Verde have invested heavily in tourism building infrastructures like roads, international airports (on the islands of Santiago, Boa Vista and more recently, in São Vicente), ports for cruise ships and transport. On the other hand, large hotels and resorts have been built mainly on the islands of Sal and Boa Vista, driven mostly by foreign investors to stimulate tourism. The tourism industry is heavily concentrated within these two islands having welcomed 76.4% of the international tourists in 2018 (NIS, 2019). However, the island of Sal continues to be the preferred destination for international tourists, representing 49.5% of international tourists’ arrival and 56% of overnight stays.

Tourism industry is considered as a strategic pillar for the economic and social development of Cape Verde. Tourism is representing major dynamism in terms of economic and social growth by promoting employment and generating income for both residents and the Government. In this sense, the contribution of tourism to the GDP is approximately 22.0% and accounting to 20.1% of employment (Bank of Cape Verde, 2019). In doing so, designing a political policy and strategy to better plan tourism industry in Cape Verde is paramount. Given the importance of tourism for Cape Verdean socioeconomic growth and development, tourism has a dedicated minster responsible for the tourism policy and planning.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.