Vanuatu's Cruise Tourism Dilemma

This assignment examines the multifaceted impact of cruise tourism on the island nation of Vanuatu. It delves into the economic disparities faced by local islanders, highlighting their struggles despite the influx of tourists. Students are tasked with analyzing how cruise ships contribute to these challenges and proposing actionable recommendations for a more equitable and sustainable future for Vanuatu's communities.

Running head: HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM MARKET
Hospitality and Tourism Market
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
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Identify and discuss the prime ethical and governing issues presented in the Vanuatu’s
Broken Dream video:
The video depicts that there is no change for the locals, toilets for the foreigners but not
for the local communities. As, they do not get the money from the ships this leads to their
continuous problems regarding development. Though there is, a water system in the back part of
the graveyard still no local communities are ought to use that because it is for the tourists.
According to the local people the money that is made from the cruises are never utilized properly
since the beginning of the tours. It is many years that the ships visit the island still there is barely
any change in the life cycle of the locals. They conserve rainwater, no gas system for cooking,
though some has generators but availability of fuel is a problem. The local wants improvement in
the public health system (sbs.com, 2013).
According to the locals, someone steals their money that is got from the ship, as they
have no idea what goes outside the island. The main problem is that the islanders are facing
distrusted services with their money. The ferry system is very expensive for the islanders. The
head of the tourist committee exploits the fact that there is no financial report about the money
until 2012 until he became the head (Tabani, 2017). It is found out from the video that the whole
services are corrupted. Port Villa is the place that is marked for keeping the records of the
money. It is known from the video that after the independence in 1980, 12 years past the
independence was good but things changed after that period (Parker, 2013). After that span, the
locals seemed not to trust the government and demanded their own administrations.
Former prime minister offered water system to his favourite people and did not think
about the villagers. The government have always failed in keeping their commitments and that is

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why the locals no longer believe in the commitments of the governments. The locals believe that
Vanuatu has turned to a big marketplace for the bidders. They want to develop their own
businesses, which will help them get to work together and make money. However, the video
clearly depicts that there is no change made after the independence for the rural people
(youtube.com, 2013).
Did PO Cruises act ethically in this case?
The P&O cruise did not seem to act ethically as per the video because they must have
given some of the money to the islanders instead of having direct transactions with the
government. It is seen from the video that the islanders open the stalls at the arrival of the
tourists and the rest of the time, they face a lot of hardship in their livelihood. Hence, if the cruise
could have worked properly then maybe there would have been an improvement in the lifestyle
of the islanders. The cruise worked unethically because even after marking the problems the
islanders face, they never took any initiative to bring some differences (Pocruises.com.au, 2017).
Carnival Australia owns the P&O cruise business and they manage all the trips of the
cruises. Though the aim of sailing these cruises are, enhancing economic opportunities for the
visited islanders still Vanuatu have never faced the determined changes in their economic
condition even after the commitment and visit of so many years. Though the reports on the P&O
cruises depicts the fact that they are working with the communities for encouraging sustainable
experiences still the video does not imply the same fact. The local people do not think that they
have been helped by the cruise at all, hence it can be said that in spite of the fact that the cruise
aims to help the islanders still there is barely any help from their side towards the islanders
(ifc.org, 2014).

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The islanders wait for another cruise to visit their island so that they are able to gather
some amount of money by setting stalls for them. The islanders complain that they have no help
at all from the cruise and neither from the government as they think that the money is stolen
every time the cruise leaves (Muehlebach, 2013). The islanders need help and that is not only
from the government but also from the cruise, which often visits the island. The cruise needs to
take initiative and help the islanders to get a proper livelihood because the video clearly depicts
many problems that the islanders are having and those needs to resolve (Vaughan, 2013).
Who should be responsible for rectifying issued that you have identified? Why
According to the video, not one person or authority is to be blamed for the condition of
the local communities. The local people, the former prime minister, the government, the cruise,
and the overall system are to be blamed for the devastating condition of the island. The problems
that are identified are not because of any single issue but it has many heads that are involved in
this matter (Clegg & Legare, 2016).
A large amount of 800,000 dollars was allotted for improving the facilities and moving
towards development but to everyone’s surprise, no changes had been made even with 10% of
the amount (Flexner, 2013). The people living there believe that the money was stolen. However,
the problem does not seem to be only with the government but also with the people because their
attitude in the video did not imply that they were bothered about where the money went and they
did not even want to know the truth about the money. They have left their hopes after the
government explaining that the government did not fulfill their commitments but they never
forced or asked the government about the money (Allen, 2015).

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On the other hand, the government has always been playing safe with the people and did
not let them know about the money even if it was their right to know. However, it can be marked
from the video that in spite of having money the government did not provide any sort of help to
the islanders and that is what has made them suffer in silence type. Still it can be said that the
government must take responsible measures to rectify the condition of the island because the
islanders will not be able to do anything until they have the money. For the islanders it is hard to
bring any development without any money and that is why the government must take initiatives
to get hold of the situation and work accordingly by bringing changes in the island (Kratter,
2016). The government must be responsible to bring the electricity, water and gas system to the
island so that the people living there can get a proper life style.
Discuss how Australian and/or Vanuatu’s governments could have resolved identified
issues.
The Australian government should have taken initiative to stop the issues that the people
of Vanuatu faced due to negligence. It is very important to note that the people have always
looked forward for some changes that would have been made in the island for the sake of the
people and not only for the tourists. The government should have utilized the money for
developing the necessary things required for the people so that they would have been able to live
a normal life with fewer struggles in it. It truly does not make any sense that the government in
spite of having the money failed to help the people of the island. If the government had taken
initiative for development in Vanuatu then the islanders would have been able to lead a good life.
For every country, it is the duty of the government, to look after the issues, that are
arising in the path of development but in case of Vanuatu, the government did not take any steps

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in spite of having a huge amount of money provided for the development. The government
would have interacted with the islanders if they were unaware of the existing problems in their
lives and taken steps according to that. The government would have utilized the money for the
development of the islanders so that not only the tourist had a specific toilet but also the people
had toilets and water system. The present water system in the video was for the tourists but in
case, the government had initiative then the islanders too would have a water system for their
daily use.
The government behaved like an enemy towards the people and it is found in the video
that no records were found about the transactions that was made with the money. The
government seemed to have been blind towards the problems of the people of Vanuatu. The
people faced a lot of trouble as there was no one to listen to their problems or help them out with
necessary things for a proper livelihood and so that the people would have been able to live a
happy life.
Suggest at least three recommendations to overcome such issues in the future
 The government must take initiatives for helping the islanders with health care
facilities, electricity, and gas and sewage system so that the islanders do not have
to continue their struggle for livelihood. The government also needs to maintain a
proper communication system with the islanders to reduce the communication gap
between them.
 The cruise must help the islanders with their rightful money rather than handing
the whole amount to the government thinking they will bring changes.

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 The islanders must take more initiatives by themselves and start small businesses
so that they can help themselves for a proper livelihood.

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References:
Allen, M. G. (2015). Framing food security in the Pacific Islands: empirical evidence from an
island in the Western Pacific. Regional environmental change, 15(7), 1341-1353.
Assessment of the Economic Impact of Cruise Ships to Vanuatu. (2014). Ifc.org. Retrieved 13
September 2017, from
http://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/region__ext_content/ifc_external_corporate_site/
east+asia+and+the+pacific/resources/
assessment+of+the+economic+impact+of+cruise+ships+to+vanuatu
Clegg, J. M., & Legare, C. H. (2016). A cross-cultural comparison of children’s imitative
flexibility. Developmental psychology, 52(9), 1435.
Flexner, J. L. (2013). Mission archaeology in Vanuatu: Preliminary findings, problems, and
prospects. Australasian Historical Archaeology, 31, 14.
Kratter, A. W. (2016). Birds of Melanesia: Bismarcks, Solomons, Vanuatu, and New
Caledonia. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, 128(3), 687-690.
Muehlebach, A. (2013). On precariousness and the ethical imagination: the year 2012 in
sociocultural anthropology. American Anthropologist, 115(2), 297-311.
Parker, R. (2013). Healing Dreams: Their power and purpose in your spiritual life. SPCK.
Port Vila, Vanuatu Holidays | Cruise Destinations. (2017). P&O Cruises Australia. Retrieved 13
September 2017, from
https://www.pocruises.com.au/destinations/pacific-islands/vanuatu/port-vila

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Tabani, M. (2017). Development, Tourism and Commodification of Cultures in Vanuatu. Tides
of Innovation in Oceania: Value, materiality and place, 225.
Vanuatu's Broken Dreams. (2013). News. Retrieved 13 September 2017, from
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/dateline/story/vanuatus-broken-dreams
Vanuatu's Broken Dreams. (2013). YouTube. Retrieved 13 September 2017, from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMACsi8j3us
Vaughan, A. M. (2013). The gift and the road: exploring the meanings of health and illness in
Tautu, Vanuatu (Doctoral dissertation, University of Hawai'i at Manoa