Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania

Abstract The overall objective of this study was to assess the role of wildlife tourism in improving the livelihood of communities in Burunge Wildlife Management Area (BWMA) by focusing on the economic and the socio-cultural roles. Data were obtained through household questionnaire, focus group disc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Naza Mmbaga, Joseline Tarimo, Julius Modest
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Springer 2024-11-01
Series:Discover Global Society
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1007/s44282-024-00109-w
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850062092536643584
author Naza Mmbaga
Joseline Tarimo
Julius Modest
author_facet Naza Mmbaga
Joseline Tarimo
Julius Modest
author_sort Naza Mmbaga
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The overall objective of this study was to assess the role of wildlife tourism in improving the livelihood of communities in Burunge Wildlife Management Area (BWMA) by focusing on the economic and the socio-cultural roles. Data were obtained through household questionnaire, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews in three study villages. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26 and Microsoft Excel. The findings revealed that wildlife tourism operations in the three villages associated with BWMA have generated significant benefits. Several economic and socio-cultural livelihood indicators in the study villages were significantly impacted by wildlife tourism activities. Wildlife tourism appears to have a considerable impact on increasing household incomes, but a relatively lesser impact on reducing agricultural production, which is the economic mainstay for many households in the Babati district. In terms of socio-cultural livelihood indicator, wildlife tourism operation seem to have a significant (x2 = 191.613, df = 8, N = 117 and p < 0.0001) impact in raising the profile and fame of the villages, while having a lesser impact on the erosion of local customs and culture, as most of the villagers continue to uphold their cultural practices. These findings suggest that wildlife tourism in the WMAs can improve people's standard of living and strengthen cultural values. The study recommends full consideration of socio-economic and cultural values of the communities at individual level by the potential stakeholders including policy makers. This will enhance the achievement of sustainable conservation in WMAs and community development through wildlife tourism activities.
format Article
id doaj-art-0663c858d8da498bbbb1d07632fdaf61
institution DOAJ
issn 2731-9687
language English
publishDate 2024-11-01
publisher Springer
record_format Article
series Discover Global Society
spelling doaj-art-0663c858d8da498bbbb1d07632fdaf612025-08-20T02:50:00ZengSpringerDiscover Global Society2731-96872024-11-012111110.1007/s44282-024-00109-wContribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, TanzaniaNaza Mmbaga0Joseline Tarimo1Julius Modest2Department of Biology, University of DodomaDepartment of Wildlife Management, College of African Wildlife Management, MwekaDepartment of Wildlife Management, College of African Wildlife Management, MwekaAbstract The overall objective of this study was to assess the role of wildlife tourism in improving the livelihood of communities in Burunge Wildlife Management Area (BWMA) by focusing on the economic and the socio-cultural roles. Data were obtained through household questionnaire, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews in three study villages. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26 and Microsoft Excel. The findings revealed that wildlife tourism operations in the three villages associated with BWMA have generated significant benefits. Several economic and socio-cultural livelihood indicators in the study villages were significantly impacted by wildlife tourism activities. Wildlife tourism appears to have a considerable impact on increasing household incomes, but a relatively lesser impact on reducing agricultural production, which is the economic mainstay for many households in the Babati district. In terms of socio-cultural livelihood indicator, wildlife tourism operation seem to have a significant (x2 = 191.613, df = 8, N = 117 and p < 0.0001) impact in raising the profile and fame of the villages, while having a lesser impact on the erosion of local customs and culture, as most of the villagers continue to uphold their cultural practices. These findings suggest that wildlife tourism in the WMAs can improve people's standard of living and strengthen cultural values. The study recommends full consideration of socio-economic and cultural values of the communities at individual level by the potential stakeholders including policy makers. This will enhance the achievement of sustainable conservation in WMAs and community development through wildlife tourism activities.https://doi.org/10.1007/s44282-024-00109-wCultural valuesLivelihood indicatorsWildlife tourismWildlife management areas
spellingShingle Naza Mmbaga
Joseline Tarimo
Julius Modest
Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania
Discover Global Society
Cultural values
Livelihood indicators
Wildlife tourism
Wildlife management areas
title Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania
title_full Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania
title_fullStr Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania
title_full_unstemmed Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania
title_short Contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities’ livelihood in Burunge Wildlife Management Area in Tarangire Manyara Ecosystem, Tanzania
title_sort contribution of wildlife tourism in improving local communities livelihood in burunge wildlife management area in tarangire manyara ecosystem tanzania
topic Cultural values
Livelihood indicators
Wildlife tourism
Wildlife management areas
url https://doi.org/10.1007/s44282-024-00109-w
work_keys_str_mv AT nazammbaga contributionofwildlifetourisminimprovinglocalcommunitieslivelihoodinburungewildlifemanagementareaintarangiremanyaraecosystemtanzania
AT joselinetarimo contributionofwildlifetourisminimprovinglocalcommunitieslivelihoodinburungewildlifemanagementareaintarangiremanyaraecosystemtanzania
AT juliusmodest contributionofwildlifetourisminimprovinglocalcommunitieslivelihoodinburungewildlifemanagementareaintarangiremanyaraecosystemtanzania