Spatial analysis of potential ecological sites in the northeastern parts of Ethiopia using multi-criteria decision-making models

Abstract

The northeastern part of Ethiopia, particularly Raya area is a pilgrimage site famed for its antique civilization, archaeological sites, and rural landscapes. Despite existing ecotourism potentials, the area has not been utilized for tourism for millennia. While previous work looked at the availability of natural resources, it did not identify and prioritize the resources, so knowledge gaps continue to exist in prioritization of potential ecotourism sites. This study attempted to identify various ecotourism indicators, evaluate and produce maps of suitable ecotourism sites, and prioritize optimum protected areas that are best suited for sustainable ecotourism development of Raya areas. For this analysis, 13 spatial indicators from physical, environmental, archaeological, socio-cultural, and socioeconomic sectors were considered. Analytic Hierarchical Process (AHP) was used to calculate the details of the spatial indicators and class weights. The suitability maps were classified into four classes as Highly Suitable (S1), Moderately Suitable (S2), Marginally Suitable (N1), and Not Suitable (N2). The results revealed 114.37 Km 2 (10.33%), 13.36 Km 2 (1.91%), and 10.39 Km 2 (1.62%) fall under the highly suitable class in Blocks B, A and C, respectively. AHP weights with ultimate criterion and field observations also ranked lake Ashenge, Hugumburda, and Gratkhassu national forest priority areas as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd optimal zones, respectively. The outcomes of this study are crucial for conservation pioneer work in ecological development, and should be used as an ideal blueprint by ecotourism planners and decision-makers for sustainable ecotourism development strategies.

RETRACTED: Geospatial assessment of potential land suitability for oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq) cultivation in the western parts of Ethiopia

“…3). According to Deribew et al, (2022) and Moisa et al, (2022b) the pairwise comparison among all targeted parameters has been conducted based on their importance in deciding land suitability for oil palm tree cultivation (Tab. 4).…”

Full Issue

“…Both Lake Hashenge and Hugumbirda and Gra-Kahsu forests are in southern Tigray, which region is characterised by a complex of mountains, a highland lake and plains, interspersed with a heterogeneous farmland mosaic that varies from relatively intact to substantially human-dominated. These characteristics also provide considerable potential to develop ecotourism in the region (Deribew et al 2022).…”

Study of coastal land change in sand mining activities in Bandar Batauga Village, South Buton Regency, Indonesia

“…Descriptive statistics were applied to analyze economic data and coastline changes, followed by the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) involving 12 key informants to assign weights to aspects, criteria, and alternative management strategies (Saaty, 2008;Deribew et al, 2022). The overall analysis was then formulated into strategic steps, encompassing policies and mitigation strategies based on in-depth interviews, literature reviews, and relevant documents.…”