CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
7.2 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
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roads. Lastly, the findings indicate that local community involvement in decision making is minimal while a top-down approach informs planning with little or no consultation with the residents of Mabibi.
On the economic aspect of the findings, the study indicates that the community obtains economic benefits from the two tourism establishments in Mabibi; through employment and also through the share property investments in the tourism establishments, though the latter do not seem to filter down to the community in a tangible way as yet. Formal and informal job opportunities are derived from ecotourism. Informal jobs entail selling artifacts and wood to tourists, washing clothes, and taking care of children while tourists indulged in other tourism- related activities in Mabibi. However, economic opportunities also indicated negative perceptions. The data suggested that these jobs were distributed unequally and failed to trickle down to the rest of the community. Secondly, the jobs are seasonal and depend highly on tourism peak seasons.
The analysis confirms that the IWP needs to increase local people's access to benefits and ensure their involvement in the management of the park. This will therefore result in increased support for the IWP, which will ultimately lead to sustainable development. Wishitemi et al (2005) suggest that a sustainable ecotourism industry must be able to meet the needs of the local community and simultaneously meet that of the tourist. The IWP is a major avenue for ecotourism in the Northern KwaZulu-Natal and therefore should appear to behave local people’s needs in conservation and tourism and/or providing other livelihoods. According to Sabina and Nicolae (2013), support for conservation will be compromised if local people’s needs are not considered in PAs.
Using the gender analysis framework, I was able to map out women’s experiences relating to ecotourism development and management. Even though policy and literature acknowledge tourism potential in boosting LED, the analysis shows continuing gaps in SAs ecotourism industry when gender is concerned. As suggested by Sabina and Nicolae (2013), conditions for conservation have meant that controls are placed on human activities, which has restricted local communities’ access to land and resources. Consequently, this has affected women more due to the gendered divisions of labour that tie women to land and resources in rural areas (Mkhize
& Cele 2017). The analysis indicates that Mabibi is mainly a patriarchal society that identifies men as the inhloko yekhaya (Head) and the women umqala (neck) which has proven to
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contribute to women's lack of empowerment in Mabibi. The findings revealed that women bear more costs from resource restriction due to the gendered divisions of labour. As caretakers, they are responsible for many activities that require natural resources that are restricted. This has meant that women are burdened and spend long hours on household chores and resource extraction in far places within Mabibi. Furthermore, women indicated that stress and worry are emotions that add to their difficulty when it comes to resource and water access. This indicates that the struggles revealed impact not only on the observable issues but also has implications on women's emotional and physical health.
When it comes to ecotourism benefits, findings indicate that women are a priority, however, the study reveals that the type of work available for women is based on the sexual division of labour. This suggests that distinct gendered differences remain when looking at women’s employment in Mabibi. Findings also revealed that women that get better-paying jobs are those in management positions, work as receptionists, chefs, and managers, while those in housekeeping get lower salaries. Furthermore, women benefit through training provided by the IWPA and Ezemvelo Wildlife.
In terms of women’s condition and position in Mabibi, the findings indicate that a series of gendered inequalities exist. Since development is constrained women in Mabibi carry a great burden when obtaining resources for household use hence their physical and health conditions are worsened. In the analysis, other important themes were explored. First, the politics producing gendered subjectivities which evaluated the gender relations that produced women subjects. Secondly, gender identity emerged as an important theme, in which the results indicate that gendered roles and responsibilities identified as suited for women are accepted by women which leads to women identifying themselves as caretakers of the household. This places women as the subjects of power or male dominance. As suggested by Maliva (2016), women’s environments are reconstructed based on such identities which suggests that women meet their expectations as wives or caretakers; through their compliance with this, they reconstruct the same settings that limit them.
Lastly, the findings revealed that women in Mabibi have a low status as the activities they perform are valued less. In the structures that were present in the community, men were dominantly seen which has meant that women’s position is less than that of men. The presence of just two women does not mean that they have the power to influence decisions. According
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to Sen (1999), male power and interests maintain women in positions of subordination. At the household level, women’s position to men differs from household to household. At the community level, the whole community does not participate in the management of the park.
The results build on existing evidence where tourism has borne more costs than benefits on local communities and add to our understanding of the complex and dynamic issues that shape tourism experiences in protected areas. Existing evidence has shown that costs result when communities have no access and control over resources and marginalization associated with the need to have an unspoiled environment (Mariki et al, 2015). The study has revealed that women’s position in a society where patriarchy still exists makes women more vulnerable to the costs of ecotourism in the IWP. When enclosures restrict resource access, women are left without alternative livelihoods, which in the case of women in the Mabibi shuts them out of their livelihood strategies thus dispossessing them of livelihood benefits outside the tourism industry.