Healthy tourism in a Fijian context : a WHO initiative for island tourism

This paper describes research undertaken to assist in the institutionalisation of the ethic of sustainability into tourism planning and operation. It involves developing a conceptual framework for Healthy Tourism in island microstates in the Western Pacific Region. Such a quest, to be achieved in a way that is sensitive to local geography and under the auspices of an international body such as the World Health Organization, is complex. This paper explores issues prompted by such a project. A case study of Fiji before the 2000 constitutional crisis is presented. The paper investigates attempts by the WHO to bring together tourism and the health of destination communities. It describes the theoretical contexts of tourism and health, along with the issues arising from a series of workshops conducted in Suva in March 2000. Together, these highlight implications for planning a healthy tourism concept that focuses on the health and well-being of locals as well as the safety of tourists.