CULTURAL TOURISM AND LOCAL COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT: A MIXED-METHODS APPROACH

Abstract

Cultural tourism has the possibility of leading to sustainable community development through tourism involvement, benefit-sharing, and conservation. The downside of cultural tourism at rural sites with heritage is that the sites may be affected by environmental issues, poor infrastructure, and a lack of involvement in tourism activities. This study examined the relationship between cultural tourism and local community empowerment in the Mankele community surrounding Sudwala Caves in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. A mixed-methods design was used. Secondary data, consisting of structured questionnaire responses, poll questions, open-ended responses, and focus group discussion transcripts, were analyzed. Quantitative data were examined using descriptive statistics, while qualitative data were analyzed through thematic coding. The findings were then integrated through a harmonized mixed-methods analysis. Environmental sustainability emerged as the dominant theme, followed by infrastructure and social services, economic empowerment, skills development, governance support, cultural heritage preservation, and community participation. Respondents recognized tourism as a potential source of employment, income generation, cultural enterprise, and skills development. However, the findings also showed concerns regarding limited inclusion, uneven benefits, weak institutional support, environmental management, and infrastructure constraints. In fact, cultural tourism has the potential to empower local communities through processes like inclusive governance, environmental conservation, capacity building, and livelihood development. Improved coordination among the actors involved in tourism, that is, tourism operators, local government, and the local community, will be necessary for this purpose.