Abstract
Ndwedwe Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal is regarded as one of the poorest Municipalities in the province. Ndwedwe lacks basic infrastructure and services. It is a mainly rural Municipality with Ndwedwe Town as the primary node. The Municipality has expansive natural areas, substantial agricultural potential and a rich cultural heritage. The Municipality’s Integrated Development Plan and Ndwedwe Town Development Business Plan highlight its tourism potential. This study examined community needs and economic livelihood options within the Municipality. One aspect under consideration was tourism-related aspects. This included examining current levels of participation in tourism-related activities among household members, willingness to participate in tourism activities (including the types of tourism activities preferred), tourism potential within Ndwedwe (including existing infrastructure and services and well as tourism products) and challenges faced in relation to promoting tourism in Ndwedwe. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 400 households in Ndwedwe. Given that Ndwedwe Municipality has 27 576 households, 400 households provide sufficient statistical rigour at the 95% confident interval. A random sampling approach was adopted. Surveys were supplemented with key informant interviews. The main findings indicate that very few residents were currently benefiting from tourist activities, which were limited in any event. However, there was a substantial desire to participate in tourism activities which included providing products and services. Some of the main tourism products identified were conservation, adventure, cultural and agricultural tourism. The key challenges faced were access to tourism markets, lack of infrastructure and services and inadequate tourism skills to invest in tourism enterprises.
