SOCIO-ECONOMIC DETERMINANTS OF ECO-TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN RURAL COMMUNITIES OF CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study investigated the influence of socio-economic determinant on ecotourism development in rural communities of Cross River Stat, Nigeria. Two research hypotheses were tested and a descriptive research design was adopted. The population comprised of 47,483, and multi-stage procedure approach was adopted for the sample size of 1,040 respondents. Data were collected using “Socio Economic Factors and Ecotourism Development in Rural Communities Questionnaire” (SEFEDRCQ) structured by researchers and further validated by three experts, two from Educational Foundation department, while one from Tourism Studies depart of the University of Calabar, Calabar. The reliability coefficient of .83 to .89 was determined using Cronbach Alpha. The data collected were analyzed using Simple Linear Regression, the result revealed that there is a significance influence of Job creation and income generation on ecotourism development. Ultimately, the research concluded that job creation and income generation serve as the primary catalysts for ecotourism development in the rural communities.