Pemerkasaan wanita luar bandar melalui program keusahawanan pelancongan berasaskan komuniti

Abstract

The effort of empowering women in rural tourism development have been seen to bring forth a positive impact not only to women but also the local community. There is a need to understand women’s participation in the development process of community-based tourism (CBT) organizations. Women have been actively involved in entrepreneurial activities and are the key driver of tourism development in their area. The main goal of the study was to identify the success factors of women empowerment through the organization in CBT development.There are three main objectives of the study; (i) to identify the factors that influence women’s participation in the organization; (ii) to identify the role of stakeholders in empowering women; and (iii) to identify the effectiveness of the organization in empowering women in CBT development. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and participant observation in the study area.Thematic Analysis Method was used to identify the success factors of women empowerment through the organization in the CBT development. A total of 15 respondents who are active members of Usahawan Wanita Setiu (PEWANIS) were interviewed. Based on the findings, it was found that three main factors affect the success of women in PEWANIS. The first is the economic factor as it gives an opportunity for women to generate their income. The second factor is the social dimension in the form of assistance and support provided by the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) and stakeholders, and the third factor is the political aspect reflected by the constant encouragement given by the government for women development in the study area. It is clear that given the opportunity and support, women are able to generate their income through the development of tourism activities in their area. Effort and constant encouragement from NGO like World Wildlife Fund and the tourist agencies have managed to empower local women to develop tourism products in Kampung Mangkuk, Setiu, Terengganu.