Debunking Pacific utopias : Chief Roi Mata's Domain and the re-imagining of people and place in Vanuatu

This chapter reviews research and literature on community-based tourism and the role of tourism in poverty alleviation. Since the late 1990s, the concept of pro-poor tourism (PPT), with its alleged potential to contribute to poverty alleviation, has received extensive support from donors, development agencies, tourism organisations and governments. Community-based ecotourism has the potential to make a valuable contribution to rural economic development in Fiji. In 1992, the Fiji government adopted the national environment strategy, which supported the concept of sustainable tourism through the increased development of ecotourism. The ethnographic case study of Wayalailai ecohaven resort, in the Yasawas, provides an example of a participatory approach to indigenous tourism. In particular, as the resort expands and community development occurs, evidence from surveys of Wayalailai staff and villages show that environmental impacts are emerging which need to be addressed. Namara village is located on Wayasewa, and is adjacent to Wayalailai ecohaven resort.