Community wildlife spotter on Nam Nern Night Safari tour in Nam Et-Phou Louey National Park
Tiger Trails Laos
Ecotourism service provider contracts
Community guide
WCS/NEPL NP/EU/Faces2Hearts
Community cook
WCS/NEPL NP
An inclusive, fair and transparent participation process and tourism benefit sharing mechanisms are key to building and maintaining trust within local communities.
In order to spread the tourism benefits fairly in the village, it is important to set clear and fair regulations for the ecotourism service provider selection. In case of NEPL NP ecotourism program, the key elements are:
- 1 person per household. Only one member from each household is allowed to have membership in only one service group,
- Poor and disadvantaged families are prioritized in the selection process,
- No NEPL NP regulation violation for min. of the 2 years.
To ensure transparent and equitable ecotourism service provider selection process, a multi stakeholder committee votes for the voluntary candidates. The committee consists of the following members: (1) village ecotourism head, (2) existing ecotourism service providers and (3) the national park staff who work closely with the communities.
- Ecotourism Service Provider Contracts
- Transparent and Equitable selection process
- Strict contract implementation
- Participative and Transparent contract amendment process
The ecotourism service provider work and regulations must be clearly presented to the community and there must be an opportunity for questions/answers, and negotiation. Overtime amendments may occur and must be again only confirmed once approved by the community.