Evaluating Sustainable Tourism Development Strategies in Qatar

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of sustainable tourism development in Qatar, focusing on stakeholder benefits, public/private sector partnerships, and interactive planning systems. It evaluates tourism development planning at different levels, including national, international, regional, and local bodies. The report also examines methods for measuring tourist impact, such as Environmental Impact Studies and the Cambridge Economic Impact Model. It further discusses the advantages and disadvantages of public/private sector tourism planning partnerships in Qatar, highlighting the importance of sustainable practices for the country's growing tourism industry. The document concludes with a discussion of the different methods available to measure tourist impact with reference to Qatar.

Sustainable Tourism Development
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Table of Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................................3
Task 1.........................................................................................................................................4
Task 2.........................................................................................................................................7
Task 3.......................................................................................................................................11
Task 4:......................................................................................................................................14
Task 5:......................................................................................................................................17
Conclusion................................................................................................................................20
Reference list:...........................................................................................................................21
Appendix..................................................................................................................................23
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Introduction
For any nation the travel and tourism sector is one of the budding industries for a nation. The
tourism industry contributes a noteworthy percentage of the overall revenue earned by the
nation. The tourism industry has a considerable impact on the overall economy of a country.
In this assignment, the idea and significance of Sustainable tourism is determined. Many
countries are now implementing the ideas of sustainable tourism in order to improve the
natural environment and prevent degradation of the ecosystem. The primary objective of this
assignment is to determine and evaluate the diverse approaches of the travel and tourism
sector, the process of growth and development of the travel and tours sector and the present
issues and problems that the travel and tourism sector is facing.
Here, the objectives and business idea of a travel and tourism sector as presented by the
International Tourism Consultancy in association of the United Kingdom, provides the
idea of sustainable tourism in various nations. In this study, the sustainable tourism
department has been determined.
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Task 1
1.1 Discuss how stakeholders can benefit from planning of tourism developments with
reference to Qatar.
A stakeholder can be the principle investors, employees or the customers. Stakeholders can
participate in altering the business economy. The travel and tourism sector of a country is
also partially dependent on the stakeholders because they are an active participant in the
business. In order to determine the growth and development of the tourism industry, the
stakeholders play a key role (Komppula 2014).
With respect to the tourism sector in Qatar, the governing bodies of the public sector and the
private sector are the key stakeholders and active participants in the overall business process.
Qatar being an emerging travel and tourism destination is highly dependent on both the
primary and secondary stakeholders. In the travel and tourism sector of Qatar, in order to
achieve sustainable tourism in the overall travel and tourism sector, involvement of the
stakeholder is mandatory.
According to the international tourism consultancy, in order to achieve sustainable tourism,
there needs to be a structured planning process. The overall planning process includes the
stakeholders. Tourism and travel sector contributes a noteworthy portion of the overall
revenue earned by the country. Qatar is aiming to improve its business in the travel and
tourism sector. In the recent years, the country will be host to an array of events, these
include the 2022 FIFA world cup, the FINA Swimming championship of 2023 and the
2019 WORLD Athletics Championship (excerpted from case study).
The tourism sector from a global perspective has witnessed a huge amplification in revenue
and growth in the market share. Qatar being a budding country with respect to the tourism
sector needs to address the parameters affecting the growth and development of the travel and
tourism sector. The present scenario dictates that the idea of sustainable tourism is quite
popular among the masses. The principle idea of sustainable tourism is that, the growth and
development of the tourism sector should not concern or harm the natural environment or
affect the ecosystem.
The idea of sustainable tourism, serves tow basic ideas. The first idea of sustainable
development is to advance and grow the tourism and travel industry for the concerned nation.
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This process can be achieved by improving the business structure, better marketing and
promotional procedures and more involvement of the stakeholders. The second approach of
the sustainable tourism is to provide a safe and better life for the citizens. The statistics
dictates that, Qatar needs to concern itself with the idea of sustainable tourism because the
governing body of Qatar focuses on the environment of the nation. The idea of sustainable
tourism is also beneficial for the hospitality sector. A more successful travel and tourism
sector will improve the business process of the nation, there will be better job prospects, the
revenue will be higher and therefore, the economy of the country will increase. In case of
Qatar, the idea of sustainable tourism has improved the overall business process of the nation.
The return on Investment of the country has increased (Todd et al., 2017).
1.2 Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of public/private sector tourism planning
partnerships drawing examples Qatar.
Private and public tourism planning partnership is defined as the association among the
public and the private companies that function in the tourism sector. Sustainability in the
travel and tourism industry is achieved die to this collaboration. The plans undertaken in the
sustainable tourism policies highlights on one particular travel destination at a time. The
private and the public sectors in the tourism industry of Qatar are working tirelessly to
develop sustainability in its tourism industry (Mariani and Kylänen 2014).
The advantages of this association are as follows:
The number of jobs is increasing due to the association between the private and the public
sector in the tourism industry. Organizations in the tourism industry work in collaboration to
decrease the number of crimes in the tourist destinations. They also work relentlessly in
conserving the flora and fauna of the tourist destinations. All these above stated factors
enhance the travel experience of the travellers as well as the citizens who reside in Qatar. The
private and the public sector jointly come up with plans to achieve sustainability in the
tourism sector. They draft plans regarding effective use of cultural and heritage resources
which will help in bring more tourists to the country. All the tourism related projects are
gaining immense momentum due to the collaboration between the private and the public
sectors. The partnership between the two sectors has also reduced the cost of the amenities
and the services that are required by the tourists. This has increased the inflow of the tourists
in Qatar (Mariani and Kylänen 2014).
The disadvantages are:
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In addition to the advantages there are some disadvantage side to the partnership between the
public and the private sector. Sensitive issues among the different stakeholders of the tourism
industry have taken a leap and this has occurred due to the increasing number of political
risks that arise due to the collaboration. Conflicts among the private and the public sector
arise regarding profit sharing which brings instability to the travel and the tourism industry.
Sustainability tourism in Qatar is facing a major drawback due to the structure of profit
sharing between the two sectors (Mariani and Kylänen 2014). All these conflicts have
decreased the number of tourists’ ion Qatar. The tourism industry in Qatar has to construct a
permanent profit sharing structure in order to put an end to these conflicts.
(Refer to the leaflet in the Appendix)
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Task 2
2.1 Analyze features of tourism development planning at different levels with reference
to the Qatar.
The tourism industry of Qatar conducts their developmental planning through various stages.
This is because the tourism industry has to look after various tourist destinations with the
help of the local bodies as well as the national governmental bodies. In order to define the
planning of tourism industry it can be said that it is a process with the help of which the
procedures are developed and generated to initiate sustainable tourism. Qatar National
Tourism Sector Strategy (QNTSS) 2030 is a programme that has been started by the
Qatar tourism authority in order to speed up the process of developing sustainable
tourism in the country (excerpted from case study). However, the main aim of the
programme is to look after and improve the economical as well as the environmental growth
of the tourism sector within the country. In addition, it is observed that the planning of
development in tourism sector of the country is done with the help of four bodies who are
required to play a pivotal role to help the country’s tourism gain sustainability (Page 2014).
The national bodies: This body is in charge of observing all the policies as well as the
structures that can help in developing and maintaining sustainable tourism within the
country. The national bodies look after the road constructions and road directions to establish
better link with the tourist destinations of the country. In addition to these, the national bodies
of Qatar like Qatar general organisation for standardisation and the Qatar national
commission also observe the legislative as well as the investment policies, which are related
to the tourism sector of the country.
The international bodies: This bodies firstly gathers reports and data from the tourism
industry of the country and then generates plan to gear up the country’s tourism development.
Along with Qatar, the international bodies like UNESCO and t he UNO take care of and at
the same time generate developmental plans for various other countries in order to improve
the condition of the overall tourism industry.
Local bodies: The local bodies of Qatar, with respect to the travel and tourism sector provide
ample assistance and support. The local bodies are concerned with the necessary parameters
like food and lodging for the incoming visitors and tourists. The minute destinations and
tourist attraction sites are also maintained and looked after by the local bodies (Page 2014).
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Regional bodies: The regional bodies of the country are an active participant of the travel
and tourism sector, all the regional policies with respect to the travel and tourism sector are
addressed by the regional bodies like Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD)
Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC). Along
with this, growth and maintain ace of the domestic level locations and sites are also addressed
by the regional bodies (Page 2014).
2.2 Evaluate the significance of interactive planning systems and processes in tourism
development with reference to Qatar.
According to Russel Ackoff, Interactive planning can be defined as the planning concept
where there is equal involvement of all the concerned stakeholders. The idea of Interactive
planning is formulated by all the members, stakeholders and the executives. Interactive
planning system is significant for a business process because all the members and concerned
participants are able to analyse and determine the business structure and policies of the
organisation (Bunakov et al., 2015).
For a tourism industry, the idea of interactive planning if introduced will have an optimistic
approach towards the overall business process. The significance of interactive planning
system can be determined by the segmented functions of the participating members. In an
interactive planning system, there is equal involvement of all the participants and the
stakeholders, thus a deeper approach can be presented on the business process and all the
participants can introduce ideas and strategies for improvement, thus amplifying the growth
and development of the business process (Mason 2015).
2.3 Evaluate different methods available to measure tourist impact with reference to
Qatar.
There are two methods which can be used to measure the impact of the tourists on the
tourism industry of Qatar. The different methods are as follows:
Environmental Impact Studies: Environmental impact studies helps in the understanding of
impact of the tourists on the environment of the tourist destination. The facts and figures
gathered by this study helps in understanding the impact of the tourists on the natural
resources of the country (export.gov. 2018). With the help of the information gathered, the
tourism board of the country can devise effective plans to develop sustainable tourism in the
country.
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(Figure 3: Environmental Impact Studies)
(Source: Gössling and Peeters, 2015 )
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Cambridge Economic Impact Model: This model is very helpful in measuring the impact
of tourists on the tourism industry of Qatar. In this model all the data that is collected is put in
a statistical format which makes it easy to evaluate the impact of the tourists. The regional
and the local bodies help in the collection of the data. The data collected gives a clear picture
of the impact of the tourist on the economy of Qatar (Vanhove, 2017). The data also suggest
the average amount a tourist spends on his or her trip to Qatar. The statistical data that is
gathered through the research helps in making changes in the job pattern in the tourism
industry.
Figure 2: Cambridge Economic Impact Model
(Source: Pratt, 2015)
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Task 3
3.1 Justify the introduction of the concept of sustainability in tourism development with
reference Qatar
Sustainable tourism can be developed by the help of people, culture, and environment of the
place or the tourist destination. The idea of sustainability in the tourism sector aims towards
bringing awareness among the tourists visiting the particular destination. The Qatar Tourism
Authority is drafting plans to achieve sustainability in its tourism sector. The years between
2012-2016 saw a rise in the tourism industry. Every year the percentage of tourism took a
leap of 6% annually (excerpted from case study).
Economic Sustainability: Economic sustainability is very vital for the tourism industry to
flourish in every country. The agencies in the local level that cater to the tourism industry are
collaborating with the national tourism authorities in Qatar to bring economic development in
the sector. In Qatar, many foreign travel agencies are not interested to invest this is due to the
fact that, the government is still not ready with economic sustainability policies.
Unemployment among the people is quite high here; the government should draft economic
policies to include these people in the tourism industry.
Environmental Sustainability: The natural attraction in the tourism industry plays quite a
vital role in bringing the tourists to Qatar. In Qatar, to bring in environmental sustainability it
is very important to safeguard and conserve the artificial as well as the natural environment.
The tourism board of Qatar should draft some policies to ensure that the natural resources are
not exploited (Sasidharan, 2017). The natural resources should be used in such a way that
they can be safeguarded for the future as well. Environmental sustainability can be brought to
Qatar by devising effective policies by the government of the country.
3.2 Analyze factors that may prevent/hinder sustainable tourism development with
reference to Qatar
There are some factors that prevent and hinder the growth of sustainable tourism in Qatar. All
these should looked up on by the government of Qatar and policies should be devised to
decrease their intensity so that they are not considered as barrier any more (Papatheodorou
and Pappas, 2017). The factors that hinder growth are as follows:
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 Due to increase in the percentage of the tourists coming in Qatar, the crime rates has
increased. The government of the country should take some immediate action to
encounter this problem (Amir et al., 2015).
 Conflicts between the private and the public sector in the tourism industry and
instability in the profit sharing structure is one of the grave factors that is hindering
the growth sustainable tourism in Qatar. The government should make clear rules
regarding the profit sharing structures between the public and the private sector.
 Recession is another potential factor that is hindering the growth of sustainable
tourism in Qatar. Unemployment and decrease of disposable income among the
citizens in Qatar is not letting them invest in travel plans. Decline in the rates of
domestic tourists is one of the factors that hinder sustainable tourism (Hatipoglu et al.,
2016). The government should come up with quick solutions to curb this problem.
3.3 Analyze different stages in planning for sustainability with reference Qatar.
Sustainability can be brought in the tourism industry by making certain plans. The plans will
be developed following some stages. The different stages that are required for planning to
bring in sustainability in the tourism industry in Qatar are as follows:
Figure 4: Stages of Tourism Planning Process
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