Abstract:
The tourism industry has developed remarkably since the Second World War to turn
out to be the world’s major economic activity. Moreover, tourism has become one of
the greatest vital pushers for economic development in numerous countries. Most
literature highlights that tourism carries the growth of economies of numerous
countries. Tourism does not only contribute to the positive stimulation of the
economy, but it also generates employment and revenue. Lesotho is rich in tourist
attractions ranging from skiing, hiking, fly fishing, rock painting, rock art, bird
watching, dinosaur bone fossils, and many more, but few research studies highlight
the plight of Lesotho’s tourism attractions. Therefore, this study investigated why
Lesotho’s attractions are not attracting a significantly incremental number of tourist
arrivals on a year-to-year basis, and whether the state has the ability to mobilise
more international visitors to its tourist attractions and ensure tourism-driven
economic growth. For this study, convenience sampling was used to gather data by
interviewing 30 participants in each of the 11 villages of the Qacha’s Nek district, one
of the 10 districts of Lesotho. Each of the interviewees was helped to fill in a
questionnaire that the researcher analysed and drew conclusions on whether the
Lesotho possess the potential to have more inbound arrivals to its attractions and if
government could play a significant role towards boosting the economy through
tourism. The results highlighted that Lesotho has the potential to attract a
significantly high number of inbound tourist arrivals owing to the nation’s rich cultural
diversity and unique scenery, but the state and relevant authorities should address
issues of concern such as vandalism and lack of security at attraction sites, poor
roads, lack of signage on roads, and the deterioration of tourist attractions. The study
recommends that for Lesotho’s attractions to experience increased international
visitor arrivals, issues such as security, accessibility, accommodation, and upgrading
of infrastructure should be addressed.
