Community Participation in Conservation of Cultural Heritage and Tourism Development in the Historic Churches of South Wollo Zone, Ethiopia
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Abstract
Local communities, as custodians of heritage resources and Indigenous Knowledge Systems, should play a central role in passing down their heritage, especially to younger generations, and in utilizing it for the development of cultural heritage tourism. This study aimed to investigate community participation in the conservation of cultural heritage and tourism development in the historic churches of South Wollo Zone, Ethiopia. A mixed-methods approach was utilized, combining quantitative and qualitative techniques. The study drew on a combination of primary and secondary data sources. Primary data included self-administered questionnaires distributed to 268 participants, along with semi-structured interviews with 16 key informants, three focus group discussions with 18 participants, in addition to field observations. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS version 26, while qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. The findings revealed that community participation was a successful model for heritage conservation and tourism development, and the majority of monastic communities saw the conservation of heritage resources as significant. However, several barriers exist, including operational barriers (unwillingness of stakeholders to share power, centralization of public administration, and lack of information), structural barriers (elite domination, lack of financial resources, professional attitudes, and absence of an appropriate legal system), and cultural barriers (limited capacity of poor people, and apathy and low awareness in the local community.
