Tourism activity, terrorism and political instability within the commonwealth: the cases of Fiji and Kenya

Abstract

This paper discusses the effects of terrorism and political unrest on the level of tourism activities in two developing countries that are a part of the Commonwealth, Kenya and Fiji. The paper explores the nature of the attacks and their impacts on the case studies in terms of the effects on the number of tourism arrivals and the volume of receipts. The responses of the governments, the media and the international communities are also examined to see if there are any guidelines to the likely magnitude and duration of the effects. The selection of case studies was limited to developing countries that are also members of the Commonwealth and which have had severe political instability or cases of terrorist attacks, or both. In so doing the paper observes the relationship that exists between the changes in arrivals and the changes in tourism receipts as a result of the occurrence of political/terrorist events. Comparisons are made between the effects on arrivals and receipts and the attempted recovery of both destinations. Although there is some commonality found in the results, the evidence of such a strong stable relationship is by no means conclusive. However, the results do suggest that political events such as a coup and internal political problems have far more severe impacts on the level of tourism activity than a low-to-medium, one-off terrorist attack.

The Tourism and Economic Growth Enigma: Examining an Ambiguous Relationship through Multiple Prisms

“…According to the literature, we argue that more democratic countries exhibit higher political stability (Dutt and Mobarak, 2015), which in turn encourages economic development and tourism activity (Farmaki et al, 2015). Interestingly, there is evidence that extended political unrest, as compared to one-off short-term political incidents, has remarkably more devastating results for tourism (Fletcher and Morakabati, 2008). Thus, it makes sense to assume that long-term political turbulence can severely hit tourism and the economy as a whole.…”

Do Political Instability, Terrorism, and Corruption Have Deterring Effects on Tourism Development Even in the Presence of Unesco Heritage? A Cross-Country Panel Estimate

“…However, political events such as a coup and internal political problems have far more severe impacts on tourism activity than one-off terrorist attack incidents (Fletcher & Morakabati, 2008). Similarly, Neumayer (2004) found that a substantial increase in terrorist events lowers tourist arrivals by 8.8%; however, a substantial increase in human rights violation reduces tourist arrivals by 32%.…”

Medya Bağlaminda Poli̇ti̇k İsti̇krarsizlik-Turi̇zm İli̇şki̇si̇

“…Ayrıca tamamen dışsal faktör olarak kabul edilen yabancı ülke gelirlerindeki artışın da ülke turizmindeki büyümeye olumlu katkıda bulunduğu gözlenmiştir. Fletcher and Morakabati (2008), "Tourism Activity, Terrorism and Political Instability within the Commonwealth: The Cases of Fiji and Kenya" adlı çalışmasına göre, dünyanın herhangi bir yerine ya da bir destinasyona ziyaret sırasında algılanan veya var olan seyahat riskleri, turistlerin temel ihtiyaçlarından birisi olan kişisel güvenlik algısına etki edeceği için turistlerin vereceği kararlar da bu durumdan etkilenebilir. Bunun sonucunda turistler; alternatif destinasyonlara yönelmekten, seyahatin iptaline varana kadar değişik şekilde tepki gösterebilirler.…”