Promoting Participation in Local Natural Resource Management through Ecological Cultural Tourism: Case Study in Vam Nao Reservoir Area, An Giang Province, Vietnam

https://doi.org/10.1177/0021909620935426

Journal of Asian and African Studies

2020, Vol. 55(6) 863–879

© The Author(s) 2020

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DOI: 10.1177/0021909620935426

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J A A S

Promoting Participation in Local

Natural Resource Management

through Ecological Cultural

Tourism: Case Study in Vam Nao

Reservoir Area, An Giang Province,

Vietnam

Le Hue Huong

Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Bui Loan Thuy

Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City – University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam

Nguyen Thi Phuong Linh

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ton Duc Thang University, Vietnam

Abstract

This paper focuses on local people’s participation in the development of ecological cultural tourism in the

Vam Nao reservoir area of An Giang Province, located approximately 180kilomteres southeast of Ho Chi

Minh City, Vietnam. Building on experiences of several countries on how to involve local people in natural

resource management and ecotourism development, we interviewed 95 in-depth stakeholders related to

natural resource management, tourism, environment, and people’s participation; distributed questionnaires

to 340 tourists; and synthesised field survey data from 500 online visitor surveys. On the basis of analysis

and evaluation of these materials, this paper suggests a new policy on tourism for An Giang provincial leaders

involving preservation of local cultural values as support for ecological and cultural tourism in the studied

area. In the last section, the paper makes recommendations for increasing community participation in areas

similar to the one studied herein.

Keywords

Management, natural resources, community participation, ecological cultural tourism, An Giang,

development, local government tourism policy

Corresponding author:

Nguyen Thi Phuong Linh, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City,

Vietnam.

Email: [email protected]

935426JAS0010.1177/0021909620935426Journal of Asian and African StudiesLe et al.

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Original Article