Tourism Capacity Development in India: The Use of ICT Enabled Mechanisms

The purpose of this research is to explore if ICT mechanisms play a role in capacity building in Indian Tourism. It uses a cross disciplinary approach with ICT as well as Tourism concepts being examined. The study is divided into two parts, the first dealing with determining the main gaps in the tourism capacity in India through a situational and SWOT analysis and the second part tries to explore the role of ICT enabled mechanisms for capacity building in Indian Tourism through five representative case studies from India. Due to limited scope that can be covered in the dissertation only the ICT mechanisms related to marketing and human resource related capacity needs were examined. The results for all the cases showed a positive affirmation, except in the case of Technology enhanced learning, though it showed a positive capacity building role, it did not show the desired results in Tourism capacity development. The study demonstrates that for ICT enabled mechanisms to be truly effective for capacity building, all aspects of the tourism value chain needs to be carefully analysed and the value proposition (improved process, better reach, increased revenues) needs to be ascertained. The role of enabling environment including governmental support, regulatory requirements and e-readiness needs to be ensured. Due to limited scope that can be covered in the dissertation only the ICT mechanisms related to marketing and human resource related capacity needs were examined. To reach a conclusive decision, more in-depth research is suggested