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Community based tourism and local development on the Spondylus route (Ecuador): A possible combination to face poverty

Abstract:

This paper aims to study the organizational forms with which local actors are inserted into the productive structure of the tourism in Ecuador, either through the formation of community-based tourism organizations or through groups associated with a common path, aiming at the same goal. The tourist activity, although generating incomes that may consolidate the group involved, also demands specific knowledge and connections with additional implications for local development. This causes situations that, far from bringing solutions for the local populations, give rise to conflicts that are solved with the annulment and disappearance of many initiatives. The study focuses on three communities located on the Spondylus route (Ecuador). The objective is to investigate the structural, organizational and collective practices that have allowed the consolidation of spaces for participation and maintenance of tourism. The results show that community-based tourism organized by those who have had greater participation and involvement in the political life of their communities have been able to sustain and diversify tourism services, impulsing even other initiatives that drive local development. On the other hand, a weak involvement of its members has not even allowed to capture the benefits of public policies for the sector.