Systematic literature review and future research agenda on sustainable tourism in Ethiopia

This study systematically reviews sustainable tourism research in Ethiopia by integrating descriptive mapping with structured qualitative synthesis. Guided by the PRISMA 2020 framework, the review analyzes 41 peer-reviewed studies published between 2014 and January 2026. The review uses the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) perspective as a substantive lens to examine economic, environmental, and social sustainability. It incorporates a methodological-fit and evidence-integration perspective to critically assess how different research designs contribute to knowledge. The findings reveal substantial methodological diversity, with mixed-methods, qualitative, and quantitative approaches contributing to different forms of evidence. However, the literature remains concentrated in specific destinations and tourism contexts and contains limited longitudinal, comparative, causal, and theoretically integrated research. The synthesis further shows that economic, environmental, and social sustainability dimensions are frequently examined separately rather than through integrated analyses of their interrelationships and trade-offs. The review identifies theoretical fragmentation and limited explicit theoretical positioning, while emphasizing that methodological gaps should be understood in relation to research-question fit rather than as evidence of one methodological tradition’s superiority. Based on these findings, the study proposes a future research agenda emphasizing methodological fit, theoretical integration, longitudinal and comparative research, stakeholder inclusiveness, and integrated examination of sustainability outcomes.