Religious Tourism and the Economic Development of Calabar Municipal, Cross River State, Nigeria

The study aimed to investigate religious tourism and the economic development of Calabar Municipal, Cross River State, Nigeria. To achieve the purpose of this study, a null hypothesis was formulated to guide the study. A review of related literature was carried out based on the variable of this study. The survey research design was considered useful for the study. The research adopted multiple sampling approaches. Simple random sampling technique was used to select 232 subjects used as sample in each ward in the Local Government Area. A twenty-item modified four (4) points Likert scale questionnaire titled Religious Tourism and Economic Development Questionnaire (RTEDQ) was the instruments used for gathering data for the study. To test the hypotheses formulated for the study, Pearson’s product moment correlation statistical tools was used for data analysis. The hypothesis formulated was tested at 0.05 alpha level. The results from data analysis and hypothesis testing indicated that there is a significant relationship between religious tourism and the economic development in the study area. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that the State government should ensure investment in basic infrastructure such as roads, better airports facilities and good transport system.