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BEACH TOURISM IN NIGERIA A CASE STUDY OF ELEGUSHI BEACH RESORT, LAGOS STATE.


ABSTRACT

 

This research work is divided into five chapters. It highlighted on beach tourism in Nigeria, a case study of Elegushi Beach Resort, Ikate Kingdom in Lagos State as well as other parts of the world. Chapter one discusses about beach/coastal tourism generally all over the world with particular reference to Nigeria. The challenges being faced for sustainable tourism, how beach tourism has a low recognition in Nigeria, the objectives of this research, the methods of data collection and analysis, the scope of study as well as its significance and relevance to Lagos State in particular, the nation as a whole and also to all lovers of tourism and beaches. The limitation of study was experienced and discussed in the course of study and the explanations of terms relating to beach tourism. Chapter two laid emphasis on theories used for this research work and its relevance to the work. Chapter three centers on the background information of Lagos State, Ikate town In Eti-Osa Local Government, its climate and vegetation, the socio-cultural, political and economic activities of people of Lagos State and the genealogy of Elegushi royal family. Chapter four went further to highlight the activities and operations of Elegushi Beach, the problems being faced in that beach resort, the strategies for developing and managing it as well as the implications of beach tourism on the host community. Chapter five summarized the whole thesis, recommended/suggested on what to do for sustainable beach tourism in Nigeria, and the conclusion followed suit. It is hoped that this research work will serve as a guide to lovers of tourism and beaches.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Tourism is an indispensable tool for development in the country if not the whole world. Despite some of its negative effects on the environment, it is still the devil people cannot do without. A man should ever be ready booted to take his journey whenever tourism is mentioned. Tourism industry is one of the fastest growing industry employing hundreds of millions of people worldwide which explains the reasons why study of tourism and tourism research have become so important in not only the academic field but also for the economy on the whole.

Beach tourism also known as coastal tourism and recreation are important parts of the largest and most rapidly growing activity in the world (Houston, 1995). This topic embraces the full range of tourism, leisure and recreational oriented activities that take place in the coastal zone and the off shore coastal waters across the world/globe. They include coastal tourism development, for instance, the hotels, resorts, restaurants, food industry, vacation homes, second homes and so on, the infrastructural facilities supporting coastal development like retail businesses, marinas, dive shops, fishing tackle stores, recreational boating harbors, beaches, fishing facilities, boating, cruises, swimming, snorkeling and diving as well as public and private programmes affecting the aforementioned activities (Houston, 1995).

However, the relationship between coastal areas and tourism is as old as tourism itself. Early tourists favoured seaside locations and made journeys to fashionable resorts to bathe in sea water to take advantage of its alleged curative powers. This was a major departure in the eighteenth century from a time when the sea and coast were revered as places and even feared (Lenček and Bosker, 1999). For them, “the beach historically speaking is a recent phenomenon. In fact, it took hundreds of years for the seashore to be colonized as the preeminent site for human recreation and the coast continues to be one of the most important environments for tourism in contemporary times building on its established heritage”. Hall and Page, (2005) observed that;

“The coastal environment is a magnet for tourist although its role in leisure activities has changed in time and space, as coastal destinations have developed, waned, been reimaged and redeveloped in the twentieth century. The coastal environment is a complex system which is utilized by the recreationist for day trips, while juxtaposed to these visits are those made by the domestic and international tourists”.

Beach tourism is becoming a highly competitive business as nations actively seek to draw increased numbers of visitors and increased foreign earnings to the shores. However, given today’s rapid pace of communication, the existence of poor water quality or degraded or eroding beaches is quickly communicated among networks of travel agents and others in the tourism marketing business. Despite increased awareness of the economic and environmental significance, it is only in recent years that a substantial body of research has emerged.

Furthermore, beach tourism is considered to be one of the fastest growing areas of present day tourism which is epitomized by the ‘3Ss’-sun, sand and sea. In order to create safe, stable and attractive coastal environment with clean waters and healthy coastal habitats, it is necessary to develop well managed and sustainable beach tourism. Wong (1993), argued that “it has been established that tourism is environmentally dependent and the unique character of coastal environment gives to various types of tourism development. While there is increasing recognition of the coastal environment as a tourism resource, there is also the need to consider the sustainability of the environment as it continues to open up to the full gamut of tourism activities”. He pointed out that although there are many studies on coastal tourism, they tend to emphasize the tourism system rather than the interaction of tourism and environmental systems.

Tourism and recreation-related development is one of the major factors shaping development patterns in coastal zones of the nation and the world. Indeed, virtually all coastal and ocean issue areas affect coastal tourism and recreation directly or indirectly. Clean water, healthy coastal habitats, and a safe, secure and enjoyable environment are clearly fundamental to successful coastal tourism. Similarly, bountiful living marine resources (fish, shellfish, wetlands, coral reefs and so on) are of critical importance to most recreational experiences. Security from risks associated with natural coastal hazards such as storms surge, hurricanes, tsunamis and the like is a requisite for coastal tourism to be sustainable over the long term.

Nigeria is a country situated in the western coastal region of the African continent. The country is rich in natural beauty like long blue beaches, rivers and lakes, forest, breathtaking views of the waterfalls and soothing environments. She also offers a wide variety of tourist attractions such as extended and roomy river and ocean beaches ideal for swimming, water sports activities as well as other cultural and man-made attractions particularly conducive for holidaying. Unfortunately, these natural resources have hardly been developed for tourism. Because it is a coastal country, the main attractions for the tourists are the long beaches and marine activities but the direct contribution to coastal economies made by cleaning up coastal water is often not fully recognized. But it is hardly surprising that sustainable development remains such a challenge to beach tourism destination in Nigeria. Of all the activities that take place in coastal zones, none is increasing in both volume and diversity more than beach tourism. Both the dynamic nature of this sector and its magnitude demand that it be actively taken into account in government plans, polices and programs related to the coasts and ocean. Beach tourism constitutes a strong force (both positive and negative) in shaping coastal areas and national economies, yet it is not seen as a reputable sector requiring policy, planning and management attention and resources because of lack of data collected and aggregated under this heading. Beach tourism in Nigeria is still growing because most of these beaches, sea, lakes, rivers, streams and so on have turned to be hideouts for kidnappers, militants, terrorists and criminals. Additionally, in these riverine areas, the beaches, lakes, ocean and creeks are used as places for refuse dumps, defecation, and centres to commit all sorts of crimes. Also, spoilt ships and boats are usually abandoned in the ocean thus causing problems in the ocean and health hazards for the nation. Nigeria is considered to be abundantly blessed with water resources. Human welfare and economic development generally depend on the use of water. Millions of Nigerians rely on surface water sources to meet their domestic needs. Yet, pollution discharge into the surface water by individuals and industries go on unmitigated, unregulated, and unpunished due to weakness in the existing laws. The three levels of government, the Federal, State and Local Government should share responsibilities for water resources management. Also, the importance of leisure and recreationally motivated development in the coastal zones in Nigeria tend to be neglected, under managed, underrated and understudied. In Lagos State for example, the people of Ikate are yet to know the importance of the natural and cultural attractions that they are blessed with. They do not really know much about beach tourism and values of the attractions there such as the Elegushi Beach and efforts are hardly made to maintain it. So, this research is simply pointing out how efforts should be made towards promoting beach tourism in Nigeria. This research work provides a review of some of the coastal and marine tourism literature emphasizing on the impacts. It notes the manner within which tourism is a component of integrated approaches towards coastal management and some of the strategies that are utilized to manage tourism in a sustainable fashion. These and more will be discussed about beach tourism in Nigeria, a case study of Elegushi Beach, Lagos State in the chapters of this research work.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Coastal tourism is very important in Nigeria and the whole world because of its rapid growth in economy. Despite that, there is lack of attention by public agencies to tourism and this is usually problematic in the case of coastal tourism. In Nigeria, there is usually no coordination between programmes that promote and market tourism and those that manage coastal and marine areas. Integrated coastal management often tends to be done only among environmental planning agencies. On the other hand, agencies dealing with the promotion of tourism are not involved with evaluation of its effects or with advance planning and management of the adverse impacts of tourism through avoidance, mitigation and compensation strategies (Cicin-Sain, 1993). One of the greatest challenges facing coastal managers in the developing countries is how to integrate tourism development within the ambit of integrated coastal management and increase the likelihood of long term sustainability (Cicin-Sain and Knetch, 1998). This situation is observable in Nigeria too. Because of negligence, most of the rivers, lakes, ocean and beaches and other water resources have turned out to be hideouts for kidnappers, terrorists and most times serve as refuge or escape route for unscrupulous characters while some people use the waters and places as their public toilets, places for sewage disposal and abandonment of rickety ships and boats. All these scare people away from visiting all these attractions like beaches, lakes and rivers.

Other challenges facing beaches in Nigeria include the dirty and unhygienic environments as lots of them lack adequate toilets and refuse disposal facilities, lack of adequate safety and security measures. The lack of required modern infrastructural facilities in some parts of the country, acute conditions of underdevelopment and poverty can be seen which many potential tourists may not like to be confronted with. Although coastal tourism constitutes a strong force in shaping coastal communities and local, regional and national economies, it is generally not seen as a reputable sector requiring policy, planning and management attention and resources in Nigeria. This is due to the fact that information and data tend not to be gathered and aggregated under this heading. Hence, the magnitude and importance of leisure and recreationally motivated development in the coastal zones of Nigeria tend to be underrated, understudied and under managed.

This has led to its underdevelopment as a tourist attraction and most of its tourism resources are still in their natural state. These and other related issues constitute what this research work sets out to address. It is hoped that at the end of the research exercise, the misconceptions about beaches and other water resources being used as hideouts for terrorists and kidnappers and water pollution and so on would have been erased and people will not be scared of these places. . Having mentioned all these problems, the following question readily comes to mind. Of what importance are the beaches and other attractions to people of Ikate town and other Nigerians?

It is pertinent to note that tourism industry cannot grow in a particular area if all the mentioned problems and others are not tackled since, there will be no development

1.2 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

  • What is the role of the government and the private sector in developing beach tourism in Nigeria?
  • Of what benefits are the natural and cultural attractions especially the beach to Ikate kingdom, Lagos State?
  • How can the beach and the environment be preserved, conserved and maintained?
  • How could developed beach tourism grow the economy of Lagos State?
  • What should be the level of community participation in developing Elegushi Beach?

1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this research are as follows:

  1. To identify the natural (beach) and cultural/man-made attractions in Ikate town, Lagos State, as well as to ascertain their origin.
  2. To study the tourism potentials of beaches in Lagos State for tourism development.
  • To identify the strategies for developing the resources including the Elegushi Beach.
  1. To highlight the role of government and the private sector in the development of the beaches for tourism promotion.
  2. To show the conservative mechanisms for preserving beach tourism resources as well as the ecosystem.
  3. To determine the level of community participation in developing the Elegushi Beach
  • To identify the basic impacts of beach tourism to tourism development generally.

1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research methodology is referred to as the methods the researchers use in performing research operations. In the course of this research, the researcher made use of qualitative approach to generate detailed information from the host community. The researcher established cordial relationship by coming in contact with the informants in Ikate kingdom especially the Elegushi family, workers from the Ministry of Tourism and Inter-Governmental Relations, Lagos State and the Sea School as at the time scheduled. Because of this, tour guides were introduced to take the researcher round for exploration. Qualitative approach used here is concerned with the assessment of attitudes, opinions and behaviours. It is aimed to gather an in-depth understanding of the behavioural patterns of the host community and reasons for such behaviours.

1.4.1 RESEARCH DESIGN

The research study is designed to focus on beaches in Nigeria, all the coastal/riverine areas as well as other water related activities in the country with special interest to Elegushi Beach, Lagos State. This place is chosen because Lagos State is one of the coastal areas in Nigeria and known to have so many beaches because it is mostly surrounded by ocean, lagoon, rivers, creek etc and experience influx of fun seekers or tourists in that area.

The research study is structured to elicit information on the operations and activities of Elegushi Beach and the importance of Sea School to beaches and water related projects for effective management of not only beaches but lakes, rivers and so on. The research work is descriptive and semi-structure in nature since the researcher made use of interview guide to achieve this aim. The design will help the researcher investigate the why and how of decision making and not just what, where and when in the study area.

1.4.2 METHOD AND INSTRUMENT OF DATA COLLECTION

In this course of study, the instrument for data collection is the ethnographic method since the researcher interviewed the present informants to elicit information. This involves the use of in-depth interview and participant observation technique. The interview is a face to face conversation to explore issues in details. The in-depth interview is a qualitative approach, which proceeds as a confidential and secure conversation between an interviewer and a respondent by means of a thorough composed interview guide. The researcher will use this method to deeply explore the respondent’s feelings and perspectives on the research study.

Here, semi-structured interviews were conducted with use of the interview guide. The researcher interviewed few key informants who know the culture of Ikate kingdom as well as the history of the place and the genealogy of the Elegushi royal family. Also, the interviewees disclosed to the researcher on the mode of operations and activities done especially at the beach resort and the importance of these attractions to the host community. Also, the researcher gathered more information by participating in the activities done at the beach while conducting the interviews, learning the environmental settings of Ikate kingdom, their behavioural patterns, customs and traditions.

The researcher collated data from the study area through primary data source which include oral interviews and personal observation. The researcher also made use of secondary data source which was derived from newspapers, magazines and journals, literature/textbooks and internet materials written by authors on beach tourism and other tourism resources. Direct observation was very useful while photographs of both the natural (beach) and the cultural attractions were taken for clear illustrations.

1.4.3  METHOD OF DATA ANALYSIS

The data collated through in-depth interviews and participant observation are analysed using the ethnographic descriptive/qualitative approaches to know the reaction of people of Ikate town and other Lagosians towards beach tourism and other forms of tourism, how they are motivated to use the beaches as well as their perception of tourism and how tourism can contribute generally to community development. The data gathered are elucidated for proper understanding. Some are represented in statistical tables, percentages while some are shown in maps, diagrams and photographs. All these are succinctly put for the description of the place studied and for clearer illustrations.

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

It is said that all progress is born of inquiry for it leads to invention. The tourism attractions play a decisive role in tourism development. This study on beach tourism in Nigeria will help in the documentation of the importance of beaches in both archaeology and tourism with special reference to Elegushi Beach, Lagos State and to make it a popular attraction to all Nigerians. The research will draw the attention of all the stakeholders to the need to develop this resource as a beach tourism attraction.

The research will attempt to draw the attention of the community to the need to develop the beaches and make them the stewards of their heritage. Moreover, the study will explore and bring to light the benefits of beach tourism and its role in tourism development so as to attract tourists and investors to Ikate land in particular and Lagos State in general. This will help project the national image of the country internationally there by promoting beach tourism in Nigeria.

The study will help to stimulate tourism development in Lagos State and provide the basis for government policies in tourism sector.

It will serve as a teaching aid and data storage for all lovers of tourism and beaches. The study will help in widening the horizon of the researcher on beach tourism in Lagos State.

Lastly, the research study will be of great help to scholars, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in Nigeria as they will get to know the factors that promote beach tourism in Nigeria.

1.6 SCOPE OF STUDY

This study covers the people of Ikate kingdom, the origin of the place as well as the genealogy of the Elegushi royal family. It centered on the Elegushi Beach in Ikate land, Lagos State and other attractions that make up the study area. The study is done to examine the tourism potentials there and highlight the clues to management problems, its operations and activities and suggest strategies and measures to mitigate these problems for tourism to boom in that locality.

1.7 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY

It is said that for success to be achieved, there must be setbacks that can either deter or mar someone from achieving his or her aim. In other words, a research work must experience some limitations too. This research is intended to yield as much result as possible but so many constraints were encountered during the study.

Firstly, there is language barrier as the researcher neither speaks nor understands Yoruba language. The researcher had to seek for the help of interpreters to visit informants especially the old people who do not speak English language. There are few authors that have written on the subject matter which made written materials not readily available.

Finance was one of the limiting factors encountered considering the fact that the researcher traveled all the way to Lagos State for this research. The cost of transportation was high which made my trip to the destination area very expensive. Also, the mode of transportation to the sea school located in an island is by water which became scary for the researcher to embark on but later considered it an adventure since that is what tourism is all about.

Again, there was suspicion on the side of the respondents which hindered the researcher from getting much information needed and pictures of some parts for security reasons. They did not trust the researcher so well as to disclose all information needed. The researcher was denied access to some important features and had to pay some money to the informants and some villagers to help with the snapping of pictures and information.

Another limiting factor was time. The researcher because of time constraint could not make it to some areas earlier planned. The informants were not readily disposed at particular times agreed for interviews.

1.8 CLARIFICATION OF CONCEPTS

This section examines the meaning of tourism, beach tourism, beach, beach resort and coastal areas.

TOURISM:

For Dieke (2008), “tourism involves the movement or travel of people to, and stay in a destination outside their normal place of residence or work; that stay is usually of a short-term and temporary nature (at least 24 hours). The visit is for a specific purpose for instance, (a) leisure or holiday or recreational or (b) business or

 

  • VFR: Visiting friends and relatives but not connected with paid job or employment”.

Burkart et al cited in Walker and Walker, (2011), posits that the characteristics of tourism are:

  1. a) That because of complexity, tourism is a combination of phenomena and relationships.
  2. b) That it has two essential elements: the dynamic element- the journey and the static element- the stay.
  3. c) The journey and the stay are to and from destinations outside the place of residence and work.
  4. d) The movement to destinations is temporary and short term with the intention to return within a few days, weeks or months.
  5. e) Destinations are visited for purposes not connected with paid work, that is, not for employment purposes.

Four major types of tourism are identified:

  1. i) Internal tourism: which means residents of a country visiting other parts of their own country.
  2. ii) International tourism: this means inbound tourism and visits to a country or region by non residents.

iii) Domestic tourism: is the inbound tourism plus internal tourism.

  1. iv) Outbound tourism: means visits by residents of a country or region to another country or region.

Plog discussed the types of tourist based on the psychology of the tourists; the allo-centric and psycho-centric types of tourist. The psycho-centric are the psychological types who do not like unfamiliar environments or cultures, so whenever they select a holiday, they will seek for the familiar regions than the unfamiliar remote regions.

While the allo-centric are the groups in the society who will be prepared to risk a far more uncertain holiday destination and will search for strange or unfamiliar places (Plog, 1974).

Therefore, tourism involves the movement and stay of person or persons to a particular region outside the place of residence for leisure, meetings, health, visiting friends and relatives, religion, business and must be for a comparatively short time. The movement can be within or outside a particular region. A tourist can be seen as a temporary visitor staying at least 24 hours in a place visited and must have a specific purpose. A tourist can be a domestic tourist who is traveling within the country or international tourist who is traveling outside the national frontier or country.

BEACH TOURISM

“This refers to the type of tourism which takes place at the seaside- so resorts figure highly here”(Page and Connell 2006). Beach or coastal tourism embraces the full range of tourism, leisure and recreationally oriented activities that take place in the coastal zone and the off shore coastal water. Coastal tourism is based on a unique resource combination at the border of land and sea environment: sun, water, beaches, outstanding scenic views, rich biological diversity (birds, whales, corals and so on), sea food and good transportation infrastructure.

BEACH

It is a landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones. The particles comprising the beach are occasionally biological in origin such as mollusc shells or coralline algae. Beaches are the result of wave action by which waves or currents move sand or other loose sediments of which the beach is made as these particles are held on suspension. The rock materials move onshore, offshore or along shore by the forces of waves and currents. Most beach materials are the products of weathering and erosion.

The beach is epitomized by these 3Ss: sand, sun and sea and every beach has a beach profile and a beach berm. Beach profile describes the landscape of the beach, both above the water and below it. It changes seasonally due to change in wave energy experienced during summer and winter periods but mostly experienced during summer due to gentle wave action. Beach berm on the other hand, is the part mostly above water (depending upon tide), and more or less actively influenced by the waves at some point in the tide. The areas above the water include the intertidal zone, vegetation, such as trees, shrubs or grasses and its type of sand and rock.

BEACH RESORT

A beach resort is a resort located on the coast. It can also be a resort hotel or resort town located on the coast examples are Elegushi Beach, Lekki Beach, Bar Beach, Tarkwa Bay and the rest of them.

COASTAL AREAS

These are defined as those regions influenced by the proximity of the sea. Coastal areas are transitional areas between the land and sea characterized by a very high biodiversity and they include some of the richest and most fragile ecosystems on earth, like mangroves and coral reefs.

Furthermore, coastal areas are seen as the interface or transition areas between land and sea including large inland lakes. They are diverse in function and form, dynamic and do not lend themselves well to definition by strict spatial boundaries. Unlike watersheds, there are no exact natural boundaries that unambiguously delineate coastal areas. Coastal areas are therefore characterized by the vertical accretion of near-shore land. This depends on several factors; sediment supply from rivers or from the sea, the width of the shelf or the proximity of a submarine canyon through which currents remove sediments and the strength of long shore currents and incidence of cyclones, both of which transport and redistribute sediments along the coast (www.coastalwiki.org). In Nigeria, the coastal areas are the riverine areas in the country. They include: Lagos State where there are lagoons, ocean, creeks, Agulu lake in Anambra State, Kainji Dam in Niger State. Other places that are surrounded by water are River Niger, River Benue, Kogi River, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross River, Delta, Akwa-Ibom, Imo River, Oji River in Enugu State and the rest of them. Apart from water serving different purposes like using it to generate different levels of energy such as electricity and hydrological energy, provides basic human needs such as drinking, cooking, washing, bathing, transportation and so on, if well harnessed can benefit from beach tourism development.

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