Livelihood Transformation Essay

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The process of livelihood transformation in Komodo Village indicated that the difficult period of bagan fishing and the rapid increase of tourist visit were the significant driving force of the transformation. The livelihood transformation was initiated with the intention of seeking a way around the challenging conditions of bagan fishing. The opportunity to have a much lighter job and easy money has become the main attraction for these fishermen to shift their livelihood to the souvenir business. Although this transformation enabled local people to generate sufficient income, it is premature to conclude that tourism is an appropriate strategy to provide sustainable livelihoods for local communities.

The case of Komodo Village showed that …show more content…

Their ability to face the challenges was strongly affected by financial capital, communication skills and connections. Strong financial capital obtained from adequate finance management and large connections appeared to highly assist the sellers’ resilience in the midst of challenges. Whereas, sufficient communication skills enabled them to be hired as naturalist guides. The absence of these factors forced souvenir businessmen to put in extra effort to maintain their livelihood. Livelihood diversification was applied by operating tourism-related businesses other than the souvenir business. Optimisation of assets was the focal strategy that enabled them to diversify their livelihoods. By opening homestays they utilised their houses to facilitate income-generating activities (Beall & Kanji, 1999). Similarly, renting out small boats as a form of tour transport also provided these people with an alternative for earning more money. As this business targeted regular visitors, they reduced their dependency on cruise visits but remained fully dependent on …show more content…

By giving up their fishery-based traditional lifestyle shifting fully to the souvenir business, these people did not enhance their resilience. They only replaced one form of livelihood with another. Whilst at the time of the research the new tourism-dependent livelihood provides a reasonably solid income, this livelihood is vulnerable due to the threats inherent to the nature of the tourism industry. In line with Tao and Wall (2009b), findings showed that the full replacement has put the local people at risk instead of strengthening their capability in securing livelihood. Sustainable development is achieved when poverty is reduced, wellbeing is enhanced, food security is offered, and a measure of empowerment is realized (Department for International Development [DFID], 1999; Scoones, 1998; Su, Wall, & Xu, 2016; Tao & Wall, 2009b). Hence, in the case of Komodo people, sustainable livelihood through tourism development is not fully

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