FOREST ECOSYSTEMS ON THE PROTECTED AREAS OF GEORGIA AND TOURISM POLICY

References: 17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2017, www.sgemviennagreen.org, SGEM2017 Vienna GREEN Conference Proceedings, ISBN 978-619-7408-27-0 / ISSN 1314-2704, 27 - 29 November, 2017, Vol. 17, Issue 33, 537-544 pp; DOI: 10.5593/sgem2017H/33/S14.067

ABSTRACT

The goal of given research is to identify the tendencies of development of ecotourism in the forests on protected areas in Georgia, evaluate of government tourism policy, bring out the key problems and elaborate the solutions for them. The research was inspired by problems that are related to the illegal cuts of trees and other interruptions of rational nature management caused by low involvement of local population in the economic processes related to the forests. Ecotourism could be considered, as a most effective instrument to raise the local population involvement and to preserve the forest ecosystem on protected areas in Georgia. As research has shown Georgian National Tourism Administration is implementing active promotional measures related to protected areas and forest ecosystems in the last years, but local involvement policy progress does not walk in step with them. The capacity building process for locals in the sphere of tourist services is the key problem the government policy faces today. The several approaches were elaborated, that could help to solve mentioned problems: (1) transforming the protected areas into the objects of mixed ownership with shares owned by locals and strict regulation of the activities for such objects; (2) Improving local population competencies in the sphere of supplying tourists the accommodation, food and transportation services along with active promotion policy of the protected areas covered with forest. The statistic information from national Forestry Agency and Agency of protected areas, the research results of Georgian ad foreign researchers in the field were used during research. The results could be used by the public policy organizations responsible for policy of sustainable use of natural resources and rural area development.

Keywords: Forest, Georgia, Tourism, policy