ABSTRACT
Partly as result of the problems that result from contact between such international tourists and communities in Developing countries, and in an attempt to ensure greater benefits to host communities, there has been a focus, recently, on community participation in tourism planning and development. As Mowforth and Munt (1998) argued, one of the criteria often agreed as essential to achieving sustainability in any new tourism scheme, is the participation of local people. However, until recently, most tourism development lacked the direct involvement of local people (Mowforth and Munt, 1998). As Pretty (1995, p. 4) stated in relation to development projects in general:
The terms ‘people participation’ and ‘popular participation’ are now part of the normal language of development agencies.
