The influence of tourism on development of local economy: Van sample

SUMMARY Pst Graduate Study Thesis Mazlum KARAAĞAÇ YÜZÜNCÜ YIL UNIVERSITY SOCIAL SCIENCES INSTITUTE MAY, 2019 THE INFLUENCE OF TOURISM ON DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL ECONOMY: VAN SAMPLE ABSTRACT As in the most of developed and developing countries in the world, there are local-regional disparities in development in Turkey, as well. Socio-economic imbalances in underdeveloped areas can be eliminated through local economic development policies. The determination of the sector in which the local resources will most effectively be used, reveals the importance of sector selection. Tourism is an important sector with its positive contributions to the GDP of the region in which it is located, the growth of many sectors with the multiplier effect, the increase in employment in these sectors and the contribution of the increase in foreign exchange inputs both in the local and national economy. It is considered that the tourism sector can be an important instrument for the Van province to realize its development initiatives. In this context, the aim of this thesis is to measure the impact of tourism on the development of Van Province and to draw a general framework of it. The effect of tourism on the development of the local economy and the alternative tourism potential of the province is revealed in this study. In addition, it is aimed to emphasize the importance of tourism in providing economic and social development in this province and to provide a guiding study for regional/local tourism authorities or the control managers with the suggestions about what should be done in order to ensure sustainability of the Iranian market by ensuring the sustainability of tourism through the dynamic effect. Finally, in the context of the thesis, Iranian tourists visiting the province of Van and tradesmen and tourism enterprises were examined. Through these surveys, the contribution of tourism to the regional economy was tried to be measured and the results and recommendations were highlighted. Data obtained from the questionnaire were analysed through SPSS 19.0. statistics program Keywords: Local Economic Development, Tourism, Development, Iran Market, Van