Ex-Post Evaluation Methodologies for Public Tourism Investments: A Systematic Review With Applications to Huamachuco, Peru

Public tourism investment plays a strategic role in promoting territorial development, economic diversification, and cultural heritage conservation. However, traditional ex-post evaluation approaches often prioritize economic efficiency while overlooking social, environmental, and governance dimensions. This study systematically analyzes the methodologies, approaches, and limitations of ex-post evaluations of public tourism investments to identify methodological guidelines for sustainable local development in Huamachuco, Peru. A systematic literature review was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines. The review covered studies published between 2016 and 2026 and indexed in Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed. Of the 135 initially identified records, 37 studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in the final analysis. The selected publications were examined through thematic coding and bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer to identify methodological trends, conceptual relationships, and research gaps. Approximately 70.6% of the reviewed studies emphasized governance, community participation, and territorial sustainability, whereas 29.4% focused primarily on economic evaluation. Traditional models, including Input-Output analysis and Tourism Satellite Accounts, provide quantitative estimates of economic impacts but frequently overlook environmental carrying capacity, cultural preservation, and equitable benefit distribution. Conversely, governance-oriented approaches emphasize participatory decision-making, institutional coordination, and adaptive management. Bibliometric analysis identifies sustainability as a central theme connecting economic, social, environmental, and governance dimensions. These findings highlight the need for hybrid, multidimensional evaluation frameworks that integrate economic performance with community participation, territorial governance, and sustainability indicators. Such frameworks could strengthen the assessment of public tourism investments and support equitable, resilient, and culturally appropriate local development in emerging Andean destinations such as Huamachuco.