Perceptions on local communities’ role and awareness in rural tourism development : a case study from Lesotho

TL;DRAbstract

Rural tourism is an increasingly recognized tourism sector in southern Africa, and with increasing tourist visitations to local communities it has a great potential to benefit local development and well-being. In order to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs, rural communities should be able to participate actively in all aspects of tourism, including planning and management.
\nThe main purpose of this study is to analyse the perceptions of local communities and their awareness, involvement in and benefits from tourism. This was approached on the basis of survey and interview materials from local rural communities and local authorities (nature reserve managers, tourism officers, environmental/conservation officers and Conservation Committee Forum members) in the Katse and Mohale Tourism Development Area of Lesotho. Thus the mixed method research design was selected, using qualitative and quantitative approaches to derive descriptive statistics. Non-probability, purposive an

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