Poverty and Tourism: Strategies and Opportunities in Karimunjawa Island, Central Java

Abstract

Center for Tourism Studies, University of Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia Abstract This article analyzes the strategies of Pro-Poor Tourism (PPT), i.e. the strategies to increase the benefits for poor people from tourism development. It explained the view that tourism, on a small or large scale, has a positive contribution to increased sources of income, creation of employment opportunities, and community development. However, there are still problems in developing the potentialities of the local labor force to contribute in the tourism sector. The development of tourism in Karimunjawa over the past ten years has undergone good progress, but the poverty rate in Karimunjawa is still fairly high. The problem of poverty is a complex one and is linked to a decrease in the main sources of earnings, i.e. fisheries and agriculture. The underlying concern is the fact that the growth of tourism in Karimunjawa has fostered the growth of resorts, hotels or the service sector owned and run by big investors, vis-à-vis the scant participation of the poor. The dominant types of job that the local community does are as employees or hired workers, and they are rarely involved directly in the planning and development of tourism, thereby restricting the potential role of the poor in the tourism sector in Karimunjawa. This study recommends strategies for the empowerment of the local community to enable them to make a considerable contribution to tourism in Karimunjawa in an endeavor to alleviate poverty and enhance the quality of human resources. One strategy recommended in this article is the adoption of a pro-poor policy through vocational training in tourism for the local community of Karimunjawa.

Sustainable Tourism Development: the Adaptation and Resilience of the Rural Communities in (the Tourist Villages of) Karimunjawa, Central Java

“…Most of the people there are primary school leavers (47.98%), and, in fact, a considerable number did not (see Table 2 in Setiawan et al, 2017). Therefore, considering the high percentage of the productive age group, the quality of human resources in the subdistrict is arguably low.…”

“…Geographically, Karimunjawa Island is located 45 nautical miles or about 83 kilometers northwest of Jepara, at a height of 0-605 meters above sea-level, at 5 40'39'' -5 55'00'' and 100 31'15'' East Longitude, with an area of 169,800 ha consisting of a land area of 7,120 ha and a marine area of 162,680 ha (Setiawan et al, 2017). ).…”

“…Karimunjawa village was the most densely populated, with 4,557 people or 50.54% of the total population in the subdistrict, whereas Nyamuk village was the most sparsely populated, with 551 people or 6.11%. According to a report by the BPS (2016), the welfare level of Karimunjawa subdistrict was low: 32% of the households belonged to the category of prewelfare households, and 27% to the category of welfare 1 households (see Figure 2 in Setiawan et al, 2017).…”

“…Tourism has the potential for yielding foreign exchange, attracting international investments, increasing tax revenues, and creating new opportunities for employment (Setiawan et al, 2017). Tourism visits to Karimunjawa Island by domestic and foreign tourists have there were 7,579 foreign visitors to the island, and 84,536 domestic visitors, and this number has continued to increase in comparison with the numbers in the preceding years (TIC, 2016).…”

The Role of Social Capital in Community Based Tourism

“…The local government must empower the community to gain the trust of the community. The government need to provide access to the community to gain knowledge of the tourism sector or enhance the quality of human resource [23], facilitate the community to get benefit from the development of the tourism sector in the region [17]. Public trust has a positive effect for local government which is known as the legitimacy of the local community.…”