Stakeholders' participation in township tourism planning and development: the case of business managers in Soshanguve

• Published in: African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure
• Main Author: Acha-Anyi Paul Nkemngu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: AfricaJournals 2014-01-01
• Subjects: Tourism development; community development; stakeholders; business development
• Online Access: http://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/article_52_vol_3_1.pdf
• ISSN: 2223-814X

Stakeholder theory advocates the inclusion and participation of relevant stakeholders in both community and business development. This necessitates a diligent planning process with the aim of working towards pre-determined objectives. Furthermore, the constructive participation of stakeholders in the development process can be said to depend on their understanding of the role they are expected to play. Therefore, the participation of business managers in tourism planning and development can be assessed based on their familiarity with both the general and personal business success factors in their operating environment. This paper assesses the contribution of tourism business operators in Soshanguve Township to tourism development in their community. The study undertakes a quantitative survey of 29 managers of tourism businesses on their perceptions on general business success factors and personal business success factors in Soshanguve Township. The results reveal discrepancies between what the managers perceive to be general business success factors in the community and the factors they consider to have contributed to their personal business success. The inference from the above is that business managers are not optimising on the business potential in their community based on the margin of difference between what they percieve to be the best industry success factors and the implementation of the same in their personal businesses. The study concludes with recommendations on how to breach the gap in order to maximise the contribution of businesses to tourism development in Soshanguve Township. Prime among these is the increase intervention by the local government in the coordination and training of businesses in the community.