Exploring the hurdles of community-based tourism: The case of Bandarban in Bangladesh

Abstract

Being one of the most attractive places for adventure tourists, home to 11 tribal communities with their unique and colorful culture, Bandarban has enormous potential for community-based tourism (CBT) development in many areas. However, in the development process, many challenges are being faced by the locals. Thus, this project is conducted to identify the hurdles to implementing community-based tourism in Bandarban. From the literature, nine independent variables were identified to test through regression analysis, and seven were significant. Significant variables that cause hurdles to CBT development are language barriers, inadequate infrastructure, insufficient training facilities, shortage of trained human resources, limited access to information, increased cost of living, and limited community involvement in decision-making. The study further found that the local community in Bandarban has sufficient knowledge about CBT and is optimistic about the tourists and CBT development, which can benefit future development. Further study suggests the stakeholder analysis to get an insight into each stakeholder's involvement in the CBT development process.