Employment and earning impacts of tourism in a developing country context

Abstract

This master thesis is based on a research project in Eastern Indonesia aimed at investigating employment and earning impacts in the tourism industry as an example of an industry, in a developing country context. International tourism grows rapidly, billions of dollars circulate in this industry worldwide every year, and it is an industry that both uses and produces resources. Developing countries often face challenges in managing development. An industry often characterized by foreign investors and dynamic structures may steer the development in an unsocial direction. Though, managed properly, tourism offers great benefits and it may be performed in a sustainable way. The findings suggest that there are good employment and earning opportunities in tourism, but economic linkages are not created and maintained. Thus, economic leakages deprive the host community of financial benefits. Lack of collaboration between local government and associations, and lack of coordination and management are factors that combined with linkages and leakages poses challenges for the tourism industry to be managed in a sustainable and prosperous way for the local community.