Community, state and power-relations in community-based tourism on Lekhubu Island, Botswana

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the results of a study investigating power relations between the local community and the state in the rural tourism development process in Botswana. The study was carried out in Mmatshumu and Letlhakane villages of the Boteti sub-district in Botswana. These villages act as the administrative centres of a community-based culture and heritage tourism project at Lekhubu Island. The Island is, itself, located about 45 kilometres to the north east of these villages. A qualitative research approach, utilising seven focus group discussions with members of the community and 17 individual interviews with key informants was adopted. To understand the power relations between the state (through the TAC) and the local community, the study focused on; the extent to which members of the local community feel they control tourism development process in Lekhubu Island; perceived level of power yielded by the state in the tourism development process at Lekhubu Island as well as; the implications of power differentials between the state and community for tourism development at Lekhubu Island. The results show that, contrary to the popular narrative about devolution of power in community-based tourism, the state remains a very powerful player in the overall decision-making process. Furthermore, the formation of local management structures (i.e. Trust) appears to simply create new power nodes which in turn continues the same legacy of community disempowerment.

摘要

本文研究了博茨瓦纳乡村旅游发展过程中地方社区与国家的权力关系。研究在博茨瓦纳博泰蒂亚区的马赛胡姆(Mmatshumu)和来特拉卡内(Letlhakane)村展开。这些村是莱克胡布(Lekhubu)岛一个社区文化与遗产旅游项目的行政中心。莱克胡布(Lekhubu)岛位于这些村东北45公里处。本研究采用质性研究方法,在社区举办了7次焦点团体座谈,同时对17位关键线人分别进行了访谈。为了理解国家(通过技术顾问委员会)与当地社区的权力关系,本研究聚焦于༚(1)当地社区成员感觉他们掌控莱克胡布(Lekhubu)岛旅游发展进程的程度༛(2)莱克胡布(Lekhubu)岛旅游发展进程中,居民对国家让渡出权力的感知水平,以及(3)国家与社区不同的权力差距对莱克胡布(Lekhubu)岛旅游发展的意涵。结果显示,与社区旅游中国家权力移交的流行论述不同,在本案例中国家仍是旅游发展总体决策过程的一个非常强势的利益主体。此外,地方管理体制的形成(比如信任)似乎仅仅创造了新的权力网络节点,而这些权力节点又会继续同样的社区去权的惯习。

KEYWORDS:

• Power relations
• decision-making process
• rural tourism
• community-based tourism
• CBNRM
• Botswana

关键词:

• 权力关系
• 决策过程
• 乡村旅游
• 社区旅游
• 社区为基础的自然资源管理
• 博茨瓦纳

Acknowledgements

This research received funding from the RELATE Centre of Excellence funded by the Academy of Finland through the Universities of Oulu and Tampere in Finland. I would also like to thank the anonymous reviewers whose invaluable input has greatly improved the quality of the paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

Academy of Finland: RELATE Centre of Excellence.

Notes on contributors

Monkgogi Lenao

Monkgogi Lenao holds a master of science in environmental science (tourism) form the University of Botswana and a PhD in geography (tourism) from the University of Oulu, Finland. His research interests cover culture and heritage tourism, rural tourism, community-based tourism as well as tourism and border issues. For his PhD, he researched the use of rural tourism as a tool to improve rural lives in a developing country, using Botswana in the Southern African region as an example. The study focused on the development process of community-based rural tourism at Lekhubu Island in Botswana. Issues investigated include stakeholder roles and relations, community expectations and challenges facing the development of this project. He is on leave from the University of Botswana, where he teaches tourism studies in the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management. Currently, he holds a postdoctoral research position in the RELATE Centre of Excellence (a project funded by the Academy of Finland) in the University of Oulu, Department of Geography.