RURAL TOURISM ASSOCIATED WITH COCOA GROWING: PERCEPTIONS OF STAKEHOLDERS IN THE TRANSAMAZÔNICA REGION, STATE OF PARÁ
Regional economy, Rural tourism, Amazon.
Rural Tourism has stood out as a strategy to boost socioeconomic development, generate additional income for farmers and rural communities, and diversify the local economy. The research sought to identify the main stakeholders that make up the tourism trade in the Transamazon region, in the state of Pará, with the aim of analyzing the perceptions of these actors regarding the competitiveness of rural tourism associated with cocoa cultivation, in order to identify the potential and difficulties faced for its development. Semi-structured questionnaires with open and closed questions were applied to 56 stakeholders, including cocoa producers, tourism operators, representatives from financial institutions, education, and the service sector. The questionnaires covered seven blocks of questions, which included the profile of the respondents, general infrastructure, access conditions, tourist services, attractions, public policies, and marketing. The results reveal that, although there is a recognition of the potential of rural tourism in the region, stakeholders also face significant challenges. Among the highlighted difficulties are the lack of adequate infrastructure, the need for training of those involved, the scarcity of effective public policies that support the development of rural tourism, and a greater integration among the different sectors involved. It is concluded that, for the success of rural tourism associated with cocoa cultivation, it is essential to implement improvements in infrastructure and services, collaboration among the various actors in the tourism trade, the promotion of public policies directed at the sector, as well as fostering the training of stakeholders to overcome the identified challenges and enhance the development of rural tourism in the Transamazônica.