Community based ecotourism and beyond:The Bolivian experience

Prepared by: Cándido Pastor; Steve Edwards, Eduardo Forno, Marcelo ArzeCBC - Andes

Presented by: Marcelo ArzeCI – Bolivia

Content

• First steps– Community based ecotourism

• Scaling up– Ecotourism and protected areas– On site (destination) tourism management

• The broader vision– Advocacy and policymakers

• Lessons from our experience– An adaptive approach – Key lessons learned

First steps:Chalalán

A history of success in community based ecotourism– San José de Uchupiamonas. An isolated and poor

community within Madidi National Park– Funded by IDB, CI and the community– Five years of development and three years of

consolidation– High investment in infrastructure and training

Outcomes– Annual gross income $300,000 (equivalent to 20 years of

community income before project)– Reduced pressure on the forest and other resources - The

forest is the main asset in the business– Largest indigenous company in Bolivia– A $12 million project funded by IDB based in this

experience95 05

First steps:Chalalán

Breaking paradigms• Distance and accessibility

– One hour flight from La Paz, and 6 hours by boat from Rurrenabaque to reach the eco-lodge

• Self-sustainability– Financial:

• To date, five years of sustainability.– Social:

• Strong organization. • Half of the shares in community organization hands, and the other

half divided equally among the families of San Jose• Business and community governance compatible

– Environmental: • Increased wildlife populations, monitored by the ecotourism guides

– Business• Possibility of the community to be self managed

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First steps:The saga

Initiatives inspired in Chalalán in development – San Miguel, funded by CARE, SGP-UNDP and CI,

and after eight months of operation has reached the breakeven point

– Mapajo, developed by a CAF funded project and received market access support by CI. To date has passed the breakeven point

– Chalalan Effect there are more than sixty different activities, some with CI participation but many funded by others, mainly in alliances

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First steps:The saga

Creative models of communal ecotourism• Kawsay Huasi: More capacity building, less infrastructure

– 80% of the investment in training processes (more than 800 hrs. training)

– Based mainly in nationals and has as externality the impact on public awareness

– An increment of 270% of tourists in three years, expecting more than 10.000 tourists by the end of 2007 (baseline of 2002 was 1740 tourists)

– Strategic alliance with private sector – Possibility to develop tourism in a conflictive region

• The “A Day for the Communities” (TES) and “El Cebú” models: Merging ecotourism with cultural and agricultural tourism– Inclusion of marginal attractions in a tourism circuit: One additional

day for the tourist and new economic activities for the community– Low investment project

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First steps:The saga

Scaling up:Ecotourism and protected areas

Benchmarks in a long journey: The PA authority role – Ecotourism on PA regulation established– Site specific tourism regulations for Madidi PA passed– Payment system and income genaration by tourism in PA in

place– A specific policy on indigenous and communal

organizations involvement on PA ecotourism presented

From site to landscape activities– Pilón Lajas Indigenous Land and PA Tourism Plan

• Participatory• Lead by indigenous organization and PA Authority

– Carrasco National Park Tourism Strategy• Lead by PA Authority

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Scaling up:On site tourism management

Municipal and Destination level– Destino Verde- Verde turismo– On Site Destination Management Organizations (OGDs)– Small and medium ecotourism businesses capacity

building– Best practices– Ranking– New project – Poverty Reduction through Tourism,

supported by UNWTO / SNV– Marketing and promotion.

Indigenous lands level– Land use planning including tourism– Indigenous organization capacity building

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The broader vision: Advocacy and the policy makers

National Committee on ecotourism– An initiative of many stakeholders involved in

ecotourism processes supported by CI– Participants: Government; National NGOs: International

NGOs; Private sector; Indigenous and community companies; Donors: Other networks

– The main outcome was the two Ecotourism Summits (June 2002 and February 2006 with more than 1400 participants) and the development of an ecotourism development plan.

– Development of the ecotourism law and national policy.– Bolivian Ecotourism best practice award– Quality self evaluation in ecotourism, first step to

certification. – Investment analysis and lessons learned– Bolivia ecotourism marketing strategy95 05

Lessons from experience:An adaptive approach

Communal ecotourism

Landscape ecotourism planning and operation

Stakeholder participation advocacy and policy development

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Lessons from experience:Key lessons learned

Initiatives development– Participatory processes are essential for success– Processes to develop a communal ecotourism

take long term and need commitment– A clear leadership in the community is essential– Is impossible to develop a sustainable

ecotourism product without understanding the local and national context

– Is key to understand and take care on social and cultural issues

– The market is key to success

Capacity building– Strengthen the indigenous organization and

their identity is essential for success– Help to integrate the indigenous company into

the market through business training– The project focus should not be in infrastructure

Lessons from experience:Key lessons learned

Alliances– Less investment and less time to develop

depends on the strength of alliances: among many supporters (both technical and financial) and the communities

– Partnership with private sector: Links to businesses are an essential part of the commercialization chain

Government role– The Government will both regulate and provide

incentives for ecotourism development– Ecotourism development is mainly private

(indigenous, campesino, businessman, etc) but need the support of government and NGOs

Monitoring and documentation– The need of clear baseline and indicators to

follow up the initiatives and document the experiences

Thanks

marze@conservation.org