What question did this study set out to answer?

The research aims to evaluate the impacts of eco-tourism on the livelihoods of the Baiga community while identifying barriers to participation.

April 12, 2026Open Access

Sustainable livelihood opportunities for tribal communities through inclusive ecotourism

Key Points

The research aims to evaluate the impacts of eco-tourism on the livelihoods of the Baiga community while identifying barriers to participation.
Mixed-methods research design utilized with both qualitative and quantitative approaches.
Primary data collected from 180 tribal households through structured surveys and interviews.
Focus group discussions conducted to gain deeper insights into community perspectives.
Application of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and Community-Based Tourism theory.
Eco-tourism participation is primarily low-skilled and informal, with limited engagement in higher-value activities.
Key barriers identified include low educational attainment and limited skills among community members.
Weak institutional support and external dominance in tourism hinder inclusive participation.
Proposed an Inclusive Eco-tourism Strategy based on the 5Ps to improve community involvement and benefits.

Abstract

Abstract Eco-tourism is increasingly promoted as a sustainable development strategy that can simultaneously advance environmental conservation and enhance the livelihoods of indigenous communities. However, empirical evidence on the actual livelihood contributions of eco-tourism in tribal regions of central India remains limited. This study examines the livelihood potential and constraints of eco-tourism for the Baiga community, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG), residing in the buffer villages of the Bhoramdeo Wildlife Sanctuary in Kabirdham district, Chhattisgarh. Adopting a mixed-methods research design, the study draws on primary data collected from a stratified purposive sample of 180 tribal households using structured surveys, interviews, and focus group discussions. Participation in eco-tourism is largely confined to low-skilled, informal roles, with negligible involvement in higher-value tourism activities such as homestays, guiding, tour operations, or cultural enterprises. Low educational attainment, limited skills, weak institutional support, and external dominance of tourism enterprises emerge as key structural barriers constraining inclusive participation. Drawing on the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and Community-Based Tourism theory, the study demonstrates that despite rich ecological and cultural assets, eco-tourism has yet to translate into meaningful livelihood diversification for Baiga households. Based on these findings, the paper proposes an Inclusive Eco-tourism Strategy grounded in the 5Ps: People, Physical Infrastructure, Policy, Practice, and Process: to strengthen human capital, enable community ownership, improve benefit-sharing mechanisms, and integrate tribal enterprises into tourism value chains. The study contributes to the eco-tourism and livelihood literature by providing quantitative evidence from a marginalised tribal context and offers actionable policy insights for designing equitable and sustainable eco-tourism models in forest-dependent regions.

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