Available online at www.sciencedirect.com
ScienceDirect
Procedia Environmental Sciences 30 (2015) 139 – 144
International Conference on Environmental Forensics 2015 (iENFORCE2015)
Economic valuation of ecotourism resources in Yankari game
reserve, Bauchi Nigeria
Abdullahi Adamua, Mohd Rusli Yacoba*, Alias Radamb, Rohasliney Hashima
and Shehu Usman Adama
b
a
Department of Environmental Management, Faculty of Environmental Studies Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Malaysıa
Department of Management and Marketing Faculty of Economics and Management Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Malaysıa
Abstract
Ecotourism is regarded as an ideal mechanism for achieving both economic and ecological sustainability. The objective of this
study is to determine the tourists’ willingness to pay for conservation in Yankari game reserve using a dichotomous choice
contingent valuation method (DC-CVM) on 335 local tourists. The result of the study showed that the mean willingness to
pay as entrance fee by a tourist is 508 Naira (USD 3.4). The findings of this study would provide a guide to the management
of the game reserve to take into account the benefits associated with resources conservation and the need to review their
pricing policy.
©
Published
by Elsevier
B.V This
© 2015
2015The
TheAuthors.
Authors.
Published
by Elsevier
B.V.is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of organizing committee of Environmental Forensics Research Centre, Faculty of
Peer-review under responsibility of organizing committee of Environmental Forensics Research Centre, Faculty of Environmental Studies,
Environmental
Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia.
Universiti
Putra Malaysia.
Keywords: Contingent valuation; ecotourism; conservation; protected areas; tourist
1.
Introduction
Agents of changes such as the economic development, land use and climatic changes as well as increase in
population have continued to threaten the survival of global biodiversity that is rapidly declining at an alarming rate.
In spite of many efforts, since 2002 the global target of reducing the rate of biodiversity loss at all levels by year
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +6 03-89466739.
E-mail address: [email protected]
1878-0296 © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of organizing committee of Environmental Forensics Research Centre, Faculty of Environmental Studies,
Universiti Putra Malaysia.
doi:10.1016/j.proenv.2015.10.025
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Abdullahi Adamu et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 30 (2015) 139 – 144
2010 has not been achieved. The growing concerns about this decline in recent years have helped in increasing
awareness of the importance of biodiversity in the stability of ecosystem and its functions. As this formed the basis
for sustainable natural functions, it also provides greater potentials for human uses which include the avenue for
scientific research as well as recreational opportunities such as the ecotourism [1].
However, many ecotourism destinations globally are facing decrease in budgetary allocation for the
maintenance of their natural assets. This shortage of fund coupled with increasing tourist influx and their continuous
environmental impacts have been threatening the survival and sustainability of many sites [2]. Some potential
mechanisms for achieving the financial self-sufficiency of protected areas were identified by Emerton, Bishop and
Thomas, [3] which include the market-based approach such as entrance fee from ecotourism, bio-prospecting
charges, resource user fees, and payment for ecological services.
This fee paying policy into protected areas have long been in place in many developed nations like the United
States and Canada [4]. Therefore charging tourists a reasonable entrance fee into nature-based sites is one of the
possible options for mitigating fund inadequacy in many destinations. To determine an optimum entrance fee that
would be charged from tourists, economic approaches were developed especially the non-market techniques. One of
the most widely used non-market-based techniques is the contingent valuation method (CVM). This technique has
for long been identified as an effective method in quantifying the economic values associated with the non-marketed
goods such as the recreational resources, wildlife conservation and other environmental resources.
The interest of this paper is centred around the potentials of entrance fees increment, as it has been found
promising in many destinations of higher visitation. Charging realistic entrance fees into a nature-based site can help
in realizing the much needed funds for conservation which will prevent market failure that may arise from charging
unscientifically determined entrance fee.
This study therefore, employed the contingent valuation method to estimate the tourists’ willingness to pay for an
increase in entrance fee for conservation in Yankari game reserve.
2.
The Contingent Valuation Method
The Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) was initially proposed by Ciriacy and Wantrup in 1947 who use it in
estimating the side effects of soil erosion [5]. The Contingent Valuation method is based on the concepts of
willingness-to-pay and willingness-to-accept in an attempt to elicit information from respondents in order to
determine the value of non-market goods. For quite some times, the attention of CVM has shifted from valuation of
the environmental damages to the valuation of environmental protection. It is widely used as a policy tool
particularly in protected area management and biodiversity conservation in general [6].
Ellingson and Seidl, [7] states that CVM is among the few valuation techniques available for measuring the
economic value where there is absence of market information. Even though it is not a perfect substitute for getting
revealed preferences information and it does not give all the necessary answers for environmental monitoring. CVM
is a method that provides individual with a hypothetical opportunity to purchase public goods in the absence of real
market or existing information concerning the real market scenario. The CVM willingness to pay for non-market
goods is based on the theory of rational choice and utility maximization. It has the advantages of allowing the
researcher to develop a hypothetical market for the goods in question and to make an informed economic decision.
CVM plays a significant role in environmental policy establishment [8]. Moreover, it is simple and a direct
valuation approach aimed at eliciting preferences from questionnaires and experiments.
3.
Methodology
3.1
Study area
Yankari Game Reserve (YGR) is the premier game reserve in Nigeria, gazetted in 1956. The game reserve lies
between latitude 90 50’N and 10013’E covering an area of 2244.10 km2 within the Duguri, Pali and Gwana Districts
in Alkaleri Local Government Area of Bauchi State in North-eastern Nigeria. The major watershed found in Yankari
is the Gaji River and its tributaries. By virtue of its landscape, which is open woodland rising from 215-369 metres
above sea level, it offers a beautiful environment for tourists to see wildlife in their natural undisturbed habitat. It is
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Abdullahi Adamu et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 30 (2015) 139 – 144
but one of the 18 major nature conservation areas and wildlife parks in Nigeria. It is the premier game reserve and
also the most visited in the country.
3.2
Sampling Methods and Data Collection
A pre-test of 30 samples was conducted in January where the various bids offered in the main survey were
determined using an open-ended elicitation format. The main survey was administered between the months of
February and April 2014. Local tourists were systematically selected randomly upon their arrival in Yankari game
reserve during the survey period. Achieving accurate result for contingent valuation depends largely on the survey
method used. Based on NOAA recommendations, an in-person interview was employed where enumerators who
were trained on the content of the questionnaire interviewed 335 local tourists. The scope and purpose of the survey
was explained to the tourists and their participation was encouraged with assurance that all information collected
will be treated confidentially. Mmopelwa, Kgathi and Molefhe, [9] suggested that this would reduce possible
strategic bias that could occur if they perceived that their response would influence the pricing policy of the reserve.
There are various payment vehicles available including entrance fee, license fees, sales tax, electric bills, or
special fund. However, entrance fee was selected as the most realistic and suitable choice of payment vehicle for
tourists of recreational sites.
3.3
Model Specification and Procedures
The CVM-WTP estimates were done with the aid of NLOGIT Version 4.0 econometric software. The WTP of
the respondents can be obtained by estimating the demand function, as demand is usually based on the utility
maximization theory. For the purpose of conservation in Yankari game reserve, the tourists had the choice of
accepting or rejecting the proposed entrance fee offered in order to maximise their utility under the following
condition.
u(1,M – F;S) + ε 1 ≥ u(0,M;S)+ε0
(1)
Where u is the indirect utility function, M is the average annual income, F is the entrance fee offer, S represents
to the socio-demographic characteristics and other variables determining individuals’ preference. ε 1 and ε 0 are
identical independently distributed random variables with zero means. The utility difference (∆u) can best be
described as follows:
u(1,M – F;S) + ε 1 ≥ u(0,M;S)+ε0
(2)
The probability ( P i ሻthat the tourists will accept a specified amount (F) as entrance fee can be expressed in the
following logit model based Cameron [10] method [11,12].
P i=
ଵ
ଵା௘௫௣ሼିሺఈିఉǤிାఊǤ௫ሻሽ
(3)
Where α is a constant, β refers to the coefficient of the entrance fee variable F, x is the vector of other explanatory
variables that influences the response and γ is the vector of the corresponding slope. And the mean WTP was
estimated using the following equation.
Mean WTP =
ఉబ ାሺσఉ೙ ௑೙ ሻ
ିఉభ
(4)
Where; ߚ଴ =estimated constant, ߚ௡ = parameter of the coefficients, ܺ௡ =the mean value of explanatory variables and
ߚଵ =coefficient of the bid price.
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Abdullahi Adamu et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 30 (2015) 139 – 144
4.
4.1
Result and discussion
Sample characteristics
The socio-demographic information of the tourists (Table 1) indicates that 73.4% were men and the remaining
26.6% were women, with an average age of 36 years ranging between 18 and 70 years. From the tourists
interviewed, 43.3% reported to have attained university level of education while the remaining 56.7% attained nonuniversity level of education. This ranges from primary level of education to polytechnic or collages. The
respondents’ income indicated that an average monthly earning around N 71100 (USD 444.3).
Table 1 Socio-demographic profile of the tourists
Variable
Gender
(n=335)
Category
Marital status
Age
Educational level
Income
4.2
Percentage
Male
Female
Married
Single
25 and Below
26-35
36-45
46-55
56 and above
University
Non-University
N 19000-55000 (USD 119-344)
N 56000-92000 (USD 350-575)
N 93000-129000 (USD 581-806)
N 130000-166000 (USD 813-1038)
N 167000 and above (≥USD 1044)
73.4
26.6
71.3
28.7
17.3
35.5
26.6
14.0
6.6
43.3
56.7
46.3
27.8
15.2
6.9
3.9
Willingness to pay response to bid price and probability of ‘Yes’ response
The response to each of the bid price (Table 2) shows that there is decrease in the probability of responding ‘Yes’
as the bid price (entrance fee) is increasing and vice versa which is in line with economic theory. The various bid
prices used were 360, 420, 480, 540 and 600. The initial bid price (360) has 89.2% probability of voting “Yes” to it.
The second (420) has 87.5% probability of saying “Yes”. The third bid price 480 has 77.6% probability of saying
“Yes”. The fourth bid price (540) has a 66.7% probability of responding ‘Yes’ to it, and the fifth, which is the
highest bid price (600), has 58.5% probability of voting ‘Yes’ to it.
Table 2 Willingness to pay response to bid price and probability ‘Yes’ response
Bids Price
N (D)
360 (2.25)
420 (2.63)
480 (3.00)
540 (3.38)
600 (3.75)
4.3
Sample
Freq.
74
72
76
60
53
Yes
Freq.
66
63
59
44
31
No
(%)
19.7
18.8
17.6
13.1
9.3
Freq.
8
9
17
16
22
(%)
2.4
2.7
5.0
4.8
6.6
Prob. of Yes
(%)
89.2
87.5
77.6
66.7
58.5
Logit Model Estimate
The result of logit Model (Table 3) revealed that the explanatory variables used in the model incudes; the
respondents’ GENDER, AGE, INCOME, EDUCATION, BIDS PRICE and VISIT FREQUENCY. From these
variables, gender (1=male, 0=female), education (1=university, 0=non-university), age and income were found to be
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Abdullahi Adamu et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 30 (2015) 139 – 144
significant with a positive value on their coefficients, signifying the existence of a positive relationship between
them and the dependent variable (willingness to pay). However, the remaining two variables (Bid amount and Visit
frequency) had negative sign on their coefficient, indicating a negative relationship between them and the WTP.
This is in line with CVM literatures, that bid price has a negative relationship with WTP, as price increase, WTP
reduces [4,6,13–15] The visit frequency was used a dummy variable in the model (1=regular tourists 0=first time
tourists) and also has a negative sign on its coefficient. It revealed that regular tourists are not willing pay as
compared to the first time tourists.
Table 3 Result of the Logit Regression Model
Variable
Coefficient
Odds ratio
P-Value|
Intercept
1.8850 (1.1707)
6.586
.1074
AGE
EDUCATION
.0475 (.0222)
1.0967 (.5182)
1.049
2.994
.0330*
.0343*
INCOME
BIDS AMOUNT
.0196 (.0089)
-.0070 (.0020)
1.000
.993
.0275*
.0006***
GENDER
VISIT FREQ.
1.2128 (.3353)
-1.1821 (.4317)
3.363
.307
.0003***
.0062**
Number of observations
335
McFadden Pseudo R-squared
Log likelihood function
.3070770
-119.8985
Percentage Correct Prediction.
83.58209
Note: Figure in parenthesis is Standard Error and *** Significance at 1%, ** Significance at 5%, * Significance at 10%
4.4
Estimation of Mean WTP and Aggregate value
The mean WTP was estimated from equation (4) and was calculated to be N 508 (USD 3.40) per tourist. This
result showed that the tourists are willing to pay higher amount than the current entrance fee of N 300 (USD 1.87)
for the purpose of conservation in Yankari game reserve. From the mean WTP of the tourists obtained (N 508, USD
3.40), the estimated aggregate benefit of conservation was calculated from the average annual number of tourists
(16,782) and the mean WTP obtained. The aggregate value or benefit from conservation was estimated at N
8,525,256 (USD 53,282.85) annually.
5.
Conclusion
The present study measured the tourists' willingness to pay for conservation in Yankari game reserve. It shows an
encouraging result, as majority of the tourists are willing to pay considerably higher amount than the current fee.
The mean willingness to pay amount by the visitors as entrance fee was 508 Naira (USD; 3.40). Hence, an increase
in entrance fee can be implemented in order to provide additional revenue to meet the financial requirement for
resource conservation in Yankari. The aggregate benefit of conservation was estimated as N 8,525,256 (USD
53,282.85) annually. The results of this study justify the financial support that could be achieved through increase in
entrance fee to the game reserve for the development of ecotourism resources and other conservation projects, also it
can help in realizing the huge benefits of ecotourism that are currently not captured and can subsequently balance
the trade-off as a result of improper pricing policy. This study can assist the management of the game reserve and
policy makers in ascertaining whether reviewing fee-paying policy for conservation is a feasible option that can
guarantee the financial sustainability of the protected area. The results can also help other protected areas in Nigeria
as well as other countries that dependent on nature-based tourism in identifying the benefits associated with resource
conservation as well as important revenue source through charging an effective access fee.
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