Stakeholder Expectations Influence the Success of Rural Tourism Development: A Tale of Three Stakeholders

This paper explores the stakeholder perceptions on the development of rural tourism in Namibia. The stakeholders include Government and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), local communities and tourism establishments. It focuses on two northern regions of Namibia. Kunene region has the largest number of conservancies and Zambezi region is considered the richest region in terms of natural diversity. The research paper utilises descriptive phenomenological principles. Consequently, the approach helped in understanding the rural tourism concept from the stakeholders’ point of view and examine their contribution to the development of rural tourism. The main finding is that the influence of rural tourism development will remain minimal unless all the stakeholders understand the concept of rural tourism and are involved in the development of rural tourism strategies. Hence, the paper reinforces the significance of encouraging active participation of all stakeholders involved in the rural tourism development initiatives.