The influence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on sustainable tourism development: a case study - Petra, Jordan

The NGOs work to promote sustainable development. But in their interactions with the complex of stakeholders, including the national government, NGOs meet with limited support and encounter external management policies that hinder them in achieving their objectives and threaten their sustainability. This in turn reflects negatively on sustainable tourism outcomes. A significant cause of the managerial problem is the failure by the government to engage different stakeholders, particularly NGOs, in the planning process, and this leads to various conflicts which badly affect the outcomes of the development process. The ability of NGOs in Petra to positively influence sustainable tourism outcomes through their activities and their interactions on the social, economic and environmental level is demonstrable. Nevertheless, their activities are threatened by failure because they are neglected by the external management system. Sustainable tourism outcomes cannot be achieved unless there is much greater interaction and cooperation between all the stakeholders involved: effective communication and coordination between all the agencies that have the potential to influence tourism outcomes in Petra is essential, but presently severely lacking.