Policies in community tourism
The Bureau of Community Tourism or BCT was established in the year 2010 to develop tourism by the community and forge public participation in tourism development as well as to create community network in line with the strategy in DASTA operation, on “the creation of development network involving all sectors” referring to the participation among the state, private sector, entrepreneurs, communities, NGOs, community development agencies, educational institutions, academics, mass media, tourists and youth, to develop tourism sustainably.
- To create sustainable tourism development by communities with the principle of 3-dimension equilibrium, namely, economic, social and environmental
- For sustainable tourism with participatory process at all stages
( Society Economy Environment – habitable and strong society- residents in community tourist destinations must have good living condition, be united, and jointly develop tourism, good economy – this must be based on equal and true income distribution, fertile environment – the community must be part of the joint effort to conserve the environment and natural resources for fertility)
Goals of community tourism development
· Creating participation in sustainable tourism development, both in designated areas and areas in the process of being announced as designated areas, to build up network partners, participation in creative tourism development and models of knowledge.
· Emphasizing operation in the area (community) with potentials in development, so as to lead to the announcement as the designated area for sustainable tourism in the future, and the development of community tourism in designated areas for sustainable tourism.
· The development of sustainable tourism in the areas, by policy, and politically, such as border town, economic town, trading town, and tourism town, for example.
· Referring or delivery of the master plan on sustainable tourism development at area level to units and related network partners.
Learning, integration, by the community, for the community and the creation of network partners
The main principle on sustainable tourism development of DASTA is networking, and development based on the needs of people or community residents, who join the planning, implementing and operating themselves, while DASTA acts as the consultant, providing support and coordinating for cooperation from all related sectors.
Steps in DASTA’s Community Tourism
Community Tourism – government agencies providing support – private sector providing support – local agencies providing support - communities implementing pushing – NGO providing support – educational institutions, academics providing support – mass media propagating supporting - youth learning and prepared to push the program forward in the future – tourists learning and patronizing the communities
1. Sharing the thoughts, getting familiar and close to the community, to share ideas and to guide the efforts
2. Jointly drawing up the master plan for sustainable tourism development of each community
3. Jointly implementing the plan, supporting the realization of the plan, with the community itself as the key player
4. Jointly following up or evaluating the results following the implementation of the master plan on sustainable tourism development
5. Referring or delivering the master plan on sustainable tourism development to related local units, so as to synchronize the implementation of the plan in all sectors, taking the master plan as the main core for each network partner to turn to work together with others in the area
6. Upgrading into a designated area, following full preparations by the community, showing all the potentials, DASTA then supports the announcement of that area as a designated area for sustainable tourism
Model of community tourism and the mechanism to forge reconciliation in the community
The development of sustainable tourism through coordination of cooperation from various network partners has a hidden important mechanism, namely, the mechanism to forge reconciliation. The creation of a network of sustainable tourism can contribute to the unity and reconciliation within the country. The network of community tourism, in particular, can bring up prominently and concretely the cooperation among network partners in the same area.
The development of community tourism affords communities and various areas the opportunities to take part in the efforts, by turning to one another to discuss issues and to work together, as one of the ways to unify people of different views, and as the tool to enable the community to exist under the self-sufficient principle, by planning, implementing and benefitting jointly and sustainably.
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