Community participation in ecotourism: Evidence From Tafi Atome, Ghana.

One of the tenets of community-based ecotourism is to ensure maximum local participation in ecotourism development. However, there are evidences to show that local community’s participation in ecotourism development can assume many forms. This paper focused on the Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary; a community-based ecotourism project in a rural community in Ghana and sought to identify what form the local community’s participation in the management of the project had assumed. Data for this study was obtained from a resident survey conducted in the community between November and December, 2010. The study found out that the local community had a high degree of control over the management of the project. Nevertheless, some groups of people felt excluded from participating in decision making processes concerning the project. It was therefore recommended that the local tourism management board takes into consideration the inclusion of all identifiable sub groupings in the community is to ensure that there are all represented when decision concerning the project are to be made