Training of Trainers (ToT) for Ecotour Guides

Background

The government of Indonesia like many other countries in Asia and the Pacific have voluntarily committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2020. Indonesia has committed itself to a reduction of 26 per cent (up to 41 per cent with international support) in GHG emissions. In order to achieve this, climate change mitigation planning must be fully integrated into national economic development planning.

The effects of climate change and consequently policies of mitigation and their impact on the world of work are not always fully understood and, in some cases, considered a strain on the economy and competitiveness. The labour authorities’ and the social partners’ (ILO constituents) involvement in the development of comprehensive and coherent climate policies are required. In order to assist the government of Indonesia, the ILO through its regional office in Bangkok has selected Indonesia, as one of the five countries, to implement the Green Jobs in Asia Project. The objective of this project is to deepen ILO constituents’ understanding and commitment for the promotion of Green Jobs opportunities and an adequate transition for workers and employers towards a low carbon, climate change decelerating, environmentally friendly and socially respectful development in Indonesia.

The development of sustainable tourism in Indonesia is of paramount importance for the Government, the tourism industry and other concerned stakeholders. Part of the country’s sustainable tourism strategy is the development of eco-tourism; yet human resources need to be further strengthened in order to realize this objective. Eco-tourism activities not only will assist in generating employment opportunities, enhancing income options through increased market diversification, but also serve to encourage the community to maintain environmental quality of the local area.

Accordingly, one of the selected activities to be undertaken by the Green Jobs in Asia project is a Training of Trainer (ToT) workshop on eco tour guiding for skilled tour guides in the Lombok area. Training will be designed to be participatory and interactive, encouraging participants to advocate for sustainable tourism in the West Nusatenggara.

After completing the training, participants will be involved directly in rollout trainings wherein trainees will serve as master ecotour guides trainers to educate other local tour guides. Participants will be trained on existing national competency standards for ecotour guides (the “SKKNI”).

Purpose, Objective and Content

Given the West Nusatenggara’s comparative advantage in terms of nature attractions for national and international visitors, including Lombok eco tourism holds great potential for contributing to local economic development.

However, the growing number of visitors to Lombok and its surrounding area are imposing new demands on the private sector to consider community involvement and environmental conservation to ensure long term sustainability of the area. To address these issues the government has taken steps to improve destination management, including developing new tourism products and packages , drafting competency standards for workers in the tourism sector and supporting the establishment of institutions for professional certification in tourism and ecotourism,, and encouraging tourism product certification (e.g. green homestay certification).

It has been observed that there is a growing demand for local tour guides to provide eco tour services that explore the area’s cultural and natural heritage. These tour guides should be able to guide, inform, direct, and assist tourists, creating a community-oriented, environmentally responsible, welcoming atmosphere that ensures principles of sustainable tourism are respected and followed.