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the Asir the number one summer holiday destination. In 1998 the area received 1.3 million tourist visitors - 90% of them Saudis, and most from the large urban centers of Riyadh and Jeddah. The majority of visitors were families (40% were children) from lower and middle income groups. Tourists stayed on average between 1 and 3 weeks, and spent between SR200-500 (U$50-135) daily per person. It has been estimated that 50% of domestic tourists visit Abha. The Asir province has done more than any other to nurture domestic tourism. There are up to 77 domestic flights into Abha weekly, along with 280 bus arrivals; the city has 23 hotels, 112 apartment buildings and nine tourist villages; and a recently established Collage of Tourism aims to train young Saudis for the hospitality industry. Abha has become an example of the potential earnings to be made from tourism, and cities such as Hail, Jeddah, Tabuk, Yanbu, Jizan and Jubail are poised to develop and expand tourist facilities and attractions. Domestic tourism in Saudi Arabia is booming: in 1999 the Asir region generated SR2 billion in revenue from domestic tourism - much of it with some nature component, and available figures, now out of date, indicate that over SR4.5 billion was invested in tourism related development in 1993 (ARAC 1994). Tourism operators questioned were in general agreement that domestic tourism was growing, and that the interest in naturebased tourism was high. Not surprisingly therefore, tourist numbers and activities are starting to show signs of exceeding the capacity of some sites, resulting in the degradation of the resources on which the industry depends (Abuzinada 1999). Just as important as the benefits arising from the expansion of tourism in Asir, have been the largely unregulated and ignored environmental impacts. For example, the management of the Asir National Park, within which the Asir’s tourism development has taken place, emphasises development for human recreation, but lacks adequate protection for wildlife and habitats (Thouless 1991). A recent study by Boug (1999) cited tourist resort, holiday home and public garden developments as some of the main causes of environmental damage; for example resort and villa construction near Al Baha south to maximise views, but resulted in the almost complete loss of natural juniper forest cover, while closer to Abha a public garden was created by removing wild juniper trees and planting exotic Eucalyptus. The report also cited failure to use traditional building designs, which are more energy efficient and aesthetically pleasing than the box-like structures being erected. The upshot of the report has been the creation of a committee comprising representatives from NCWCD, King Khaled University (Abha), MEPA, MAW and the 37
Emara to study impacts and propose solutions. A submission was made to this process, calling attention to eco-tourism principles (Seddon, unpublished data). Of the 12 tourism operators questioned, all agreed that operators had a responsibility to protect the environment, but none had specific environmental protection policies, and only six could cite examples of any actions they took to limit impacts (Appendix xxx). The need for more environmental protection and environmental public awareness is becoming more widely appreciated by some agencies, and procedures such as Environmental Impact Assessment are to be put in place (Mohammed Haroon, CoC Eastern Province, pers. comm.). Administration and Regulation of Saudi Tourism Tourism currently falls within the remit of a number of government agencies, including MAW (national parks); Ministry of Education (archaeological sites); Ministry of Municipal Affairs; Ministry of Pilgrimage; Ministry of Interior, and regional Emara (Abuzinada 1999; ATI 1999) The principal government agency concerned is the Ministry of Commerce - an indication of the business oriented approach to the industry - working in conjunction with the Emara. The Ministry of Commerce is responsible for issuing licenses for commercial development which, with regard to tourism, fall under three subdepartments (Bahais 1999): (1) hotels and motels; (2) apartment buildings (in 1998 the ministry received 170 applications for the development of furnished apartments); (3) tourist villages, theme parks, marriage and exhibition halls, and food outlets. Most directly concerned with tourism development are the Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Y. Shafi, Taif CoC, pers. comm.). These are present in each of the 19 provincial centres, and are self-funded but work under the authority of the Ministry of Commerce which supervises the election of board members and received and review annuals reports. The CoCs’ membership is drawn from the local business community; their aim is to encourage and facilitate regional investment and development. Provincial CoCs are overseen by the Riyadh-based Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry. In 1999, in recognition of the growing importance of domestic tourism, a Regional Tourism Committees were created within the CoC, specifically to focus attention on tourism development. The regional committees are co-ordinated by a National Tourism Committee, which has been instrumental in urging creation of a 38
Page 1 and 2: The Unfenced Desert
Page 3 and 4: Institute of Earth Studies Universi
Page 5 and 6: 4 SUMMARY The Unfenced Desert Towar
Page 7 and 8: from human use in order to conserve
Page 9 and 10: Chapter two reviews global changes
Page 11 and 12: Chapter seven sets out the framewor
Page 13 and 14: In 1987 the report of the World Com
Page 15 and 16: and more succinctly by the Ecotouri
Page 17 and 18: infringements, environmental damage
Page 19: • policies for the development of
Page 22 and 23: “Because of the abundance and exc
Page 24 and 25: Political, economic, social and env
Page 26 and 27: Arabian Standard Oil Company), stru
Page 28 and 29: ustard Chlamydotis [undulata] macqu
Page 30 and 31: would be declared annually during t
Page 32 and 33: Al Khunfah Protected Area The over
Page 34 and 35: • Decreased application of strict
Page 36 and 37: the attitudes and awareness of a sa
Page 40 and 41: government tourism body to co-ordin
Page 42 and 43: The next chapter looks in more deta
Page 44 and 45: Chapter 5. Public attitudes to wild
Page 46 and 47: sent copies of the questionnaire fo
Page 48 and 49: animals was chosen by 41% and 39%,
Page 50 and 51: There was little variation in the p
Page 52 and 53: Falcon 6.3% Cheetah 1.5% Camel 1.1%
Page 54 and 55: • not necessarily entail overnigh
Page 56 and 57: median 4. A total of 189 people ans
Page 58 and 59: Overall, 62% of people used private
Page 60 and 61: through the news media and may sugg
Page 62 and 63: accommodation. During vacations tou
Page 64 and 65: Each protected area can them be ass
Page 66 and 67: 3 = basic facilities absent, but re
Page 68 and 69: Summary of Tourism Development Asse
Page 70 and 71: ♦ Farasan Islands Summary Assessm
Page 72 and 73: ♦ Ibex Reserve Summary Assessment
Page 74 and 75: ♦ Mahazat as-Sayd Summary Assessm
Page 76 and 77: ♦ National Wildlife Research Cent
Page 78 and 79: Ranking 4/12 Category Group 1: High
Page 80 and 81: ♦ `Uruq Bani Ma’arid Summary As
Page 82 and 83: Area Rank Key Spp. Season Potential
Page 84 and 85: departments of Planning and Protect
Page 86 and 87: guides. The NCWCD should additional
Page 88 and 89:
• Tourism revenue should aid the
Page 90 and 91:
Topic 2: Training Questions to be a
Page 92 and 93:
• Universities Suggested structur
Page 94 and 95:
Other linkages: • Private sector
Page 96 and 97:
• It is necessary to ensure that
Page 98 and 99:
APPENDIX Review of NCWCD Wildlife P
Page 100 and 101:
Date of creation = year of creation
Page 102 and 103:
PA Infrastructure Border demarcatio
Page 104 and 105:
Protected Area Al-Khunfah Administr
Page 106 and 107:
permanent concrete structure based
Page 108 and 109:
Protected Area At-Tubayq Administra
Page 110 and 111:
during these period should be minim
Page 112 and 113:
Nearest national sealed road : The
Page 114 and 115:
Protected Area Farasan Islands Admi
Page 116 and 117:
and humid in summer, spring - winte
Page 118 and 119:
Nearest towns (150 km radius) : Far
Page 120 and 121:
Protected Area Harrat al-Harrah Adm
Page 122 and 123:
eastern Cape in southern Africa. It
Page 124 and 125:
Other patrols : The NCWCD Aviation
Page 126 and 127:
Cultural/historical : 3 Facilities
Page 128 and 129:
Cultural Features Traditional uses
Page 130 and 131:
Potential activities : Driven tours
Page 132 and 133:
dorcas, reem and idmi gazelles, and
Page 134 and 135:
Sensitivity / security : Safe for v
Page 136 and 137:
The area’s designation allows for
Page 138 and 139:
Key seasons : Re-established houbar
Page 140 and 141:
Local communities involvement : Som
Page 142 and 143:
Protected Area Majami’ al-Hadb Ad
Page 144 and 145:
Threats to integrity : Unregulated
Page 146 and 147:
Protected Area National Wildlife Re
Page 148 and 149:
Responsibilities : Captive-breeding
Page 150 and 151:
Wildlife : 1 Cultural/historical :
Page 152 and 153:
151 Water : Some permanent water se
Page 154 and 155:
Other Stakeholders Local community
Page 156 and 157:
155
Page 158 and 159:
Cultural Features Traditional uses
Page 160 and 161:
Administrative features Category :
Page 162 and 163:
Ranger chain of command : Day-to-da
Page 164 and 165:
Category Group 1: High priority for
Page 166 and 167:
Child & Grainger 1990; Fisher et al
Page 168 and 169:
167 Al-Dubyani, A. 2000. Kingdom to
Page 170 and 171:
169 Child, G. 1989. Socio-economic
Page 172 and 173:
171 Green, A. A. 1984b. Wildlife re
Page 174 and 175:
173 Richter, L. K. (Eds). Tourism E
Page 176 and 177:
175 Powell, E. A. 1999. Saudi Arabi
Page 178 and 179:
177 Seddon, P. J., Abuzinada, A. H.
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