Wildlife-Based Tourism, Ecology and Sustainability of Protected Areas in Kenya

Abstract

Tourism plays a hugely significant role in Kenya’s economy, contributing to approximately 25% of Kenya’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Wildlife tourism to Kenya’s numerous National Parks and Reserves represents a substantial part of this, with around 70% of tourism revenue in Kenya coming from wildlife tourism. Ecotourism has been recommended as a sustainable development option particularly for the ecologically depressed and underdeveloped regions of the world which have little potential for development. Tourism has been recommended as a sustainable development option particularly for the economically depressed and underdeveloped regions of the world that have little potential for development (Akama, 1999). McIntyre (1993, p. 10) defined sustainable development as: A process which allows development to take place without degrading or depleting the resources which make the development possible. This is generally achieved either by managing the resources so that they are able to renew themselves at the same rate at which they are used, or switching from the use of a slowly regenerating resource to one that regenerates more rapidly. In this way, resources remain able to support future as well as current generations.