• Presentation made at the Sustainable Tourism in Small Island Developing States conference, 23-24 November 2017, Seychelles. A partnership of the Seychelles Sustainable Tourism Foundation, IUCN WCPA Tourism and Protected Areas Specialist Group, University of Seychelles, Paris Tourism Sorbonne (IREST), and Global Sustainable Tourism Council.
1. MANTA RAYS, COMMUNITIES AND
TOURISM:
YAP´s MANTA SANCTUARY
AS A PARTNERSHIP EXPERIMENT
José Truda Palazzo, Jr.
Divers for Sharks
2. • Small and unique Ecotourism market
• Combination of Culture and Nature
• Sharing of political power between traditional system and Western democratic
Yap, Federated States of Micronesia
3.
4. • 148 hotel rooms in 9 establishments
• Approximately 7,500-8,500 visitors/year from 114 countries, mostly from USA
• Mostly diving-oriented, manta rays as main attraction (80-90% of visitors – YVB)
• Diving maintains some 100 direct jobs and generates approx. US$ 5 million in revenues
• Cultural aspects draw specialized cruises – some visitors by air
• Other unique natural aspects in the sea and on land
• Main constraints: geographic isolation, air connections
Tourism: Diving (and Culture)
8. • All dive sites under some community ownership
• Different arrangements for different sites/communities
• Goofnuw Channel: Wanyan village – US$ 300/month
• Stammtisch: Talingith village – US$ 2/diver
• Other sites require permission but not payment of fees
• Dive operators take charge of all costs (eg moorings), pay fees as negotiated
Community & Diving
10. • Current system: additional benefits from diving in an uneven manner
• Potential to change it into a Manta Sanctuary Fee System?
• Easier to justify both for operators and communities
• More transparent and equitable
• Could provide funds both for communities AND conservation management
• Serves as additional Tourism attraction and advertising tool
• Yet no formal steps taken to make progress on the issue
Localized Benefits x Shared Benefits
11. • Propose a more equitable system
• Get stakeholders together (community leadership, operators, Visitors Bureau,
legislature) to discuss options
• Enact appropriate measures which combine wider benefit sharing and respect for customary
tenure
Potential Steps for Improvement
12. • Yap Visitors Bureau
• Manta Ray Bay Resort/
Yap Divers
Thanks / Kammagar!