Tourism in the Major Destinations of North Shewa Zone: Challenges, Stakeholders, and Collaborations

The availability of tourism resources and stakeholder collaboration forms the foundational basis for the existence and development of the tourism industry. The North Shewa Zone boasts an array of remarkable tourism resources, which can be categorized as religious, natural, historical, or a combination thereof. Due to the scarcity of tourism studies conducted in the zone, there is a lack of comprehensive knowledge to identify the factors impeding the industry’s development. This paper aims to investigate the challenges facing tourism development in the North Shewa Zone and to examine the roles and collaborations of various tourism sector stakeholders. Employing a case study qualitative research approach, the study utilized a purposive sampling technique to select respondents. Data was collected through key informant interviews, observation, and focus group discussions. Participants included employees from zonal and district culture and tourism offices, tour guide associations, tourist destination administrations, and other relevant stakeholders, totaling 88 individuals selected based on their experience, profession, and relevance to the study's topic. Thematic analysis was used to interpret the data. The findings indicate that although the North Shewa Zone is rich in tourism resources, its tourism development remains largely untapped, with only a few active tourist sites. The study identified several factors hindering tourism development in the zone: insufficient government attention at the district and zonal levels, budget constraints, a shortage of tourism professionals, inadequate marketing and promotional efforts, safety and security issues, lack of a formal data registration system, low stakeholder involvement, absence of relevant studies and reports, and a shortage of tourism suppliers. Moreover, the study revealed the presence of multiple potential stakeholders in the region and highlighted the weak collaboration among them in fostering tourism development. Based on these findings, the researchers propose sustainable tools and strategies, providing recommendations aimed at accelerating the development of sustainable tourism in the Northern Shewa Zone of Oromia Regional State. Keywords: tourism, challenges, stakeholders, collaboration, tourist destinations DOI: 10.7176/JTHS/68-03 Publication date: January 30th 2025