Recommendations of the International Seminar on
"Natural Area Tourism: Impacts, Planning and Management"
held at The International Centre, Dona Paula on
14th and 15th February 2008
The one hundred and fifty delegates of the International Seminar on "Natural
Area Tourism: Impacts, Planning and Management" organized by the School of
Business Studies and Management of St. Xavier's College, Mapusa, in
association with the Department of Tourism - Government of Goa, The Travel
and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) and The International centre Goa
(ICG), do hereby appreciate the initiative taken by the organizers and make
the following recommendations, indicating also the parties that have to take
necessary action:
a.. To encourage community ownership of the Natural Area Tourism projects.
Action: Governments and NGOs.
a.. To help locals to identify the natural assets their locality possesses
and to preserve what they have.
Action: Governments, NGOs and locals.
a.. To assist locals in setting up their own enterprises related to
Natural Area Tourism.
Action: Governments and Financial Institutions.
a.. Capacity Building of those who are involved in the Tourism Industry
such as taxi drivers, motorcycle pilots, hotel employees, etc., with the
help of appropriate programmes such as etiquette, language skills, computer
skills etc.
Action: Governments, Educational Institutions and NGOs.
a.. To educate tour/travel operators, as well as tourists, regarding
garbage disposal and to make ample provision of attractive bins.
Action: Governments, Hotels, Stores, Site managers, NGOs etc.
a.. To set and manage National/State Parks specific to butterflies, birds,
crocodiles, leopards, deer, mangroves, etc. with restricted core areas and
open areas, as well as sanctuaries, community reserves, reserved forests,
ecologically sensitive areas, coastal areas etc.
Action: Governments.
a.. To encourage beach decongestion, and to execute meticulously the Beach
Management Plan after formulating it wherever not available.
Action: Government, Corporations, Municipalities and Panchayats.
a.. To offer better and comfortable infrastructure leading to and around
the Natural Area Tourism Sites, which should be well maintained with
sanitation facilities, communication facilities and appropriate security.
Action: Governments.
a.. To clean, manage and protect the existing water bodies like the
springs, tanks, lakes, rivers etc.
Action: Governments, Corporations, Municipalities, Panchayats, Local
Communities and NGOs
a.. To provide incentives to locals interested / involved in Natural Area
Tourism.
Action: Governments, NGOs and Banks
a.. To assist educational institutions, to create the much required
trained manpower for the tourism industry.
Action: Governments, Educational Institutions and NGOs
a.. Goa should not be a transit point, but the resources generated by the
tourism should be ploughed back into Goa.
Action: Governments.
a.. There should not be any compromise with those factors that attract
tourists to Goa such as hospitable nature of the people, natural beauty,
beaches, safety, etc. so as to avoid the downfall of tourism.
Action: Governments, Corporations, Municipalities, Panchayats, NGOs and
Locals.
a.. To encourage visitors and locals to respect nature and natural areas.
Action: All
a.. To foster network of Communities related to Natural Area Tourism to
provide opportunities to learn from each other.
Action: Governments and NGOs.
a.. Successes in the Natural Area Tourism need to be documented. This
publicity will encourage tourists, as well as the prospective entrepreneurs.
Action: St. Xavier's College with the assistance of the Directorate of
Tourism, Government of Goa.
a.. A nodal agency to be set up by the Governments to plan, identifies,
promotes and monitor Natural Area Tourism.
Action: Respective Governments.
a.. To assist in the setting up of an Institute for Tourism Studies at St.
Xavier's College.
Action: Government of Goa & St. Xavier's College.
