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Economic development

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Encyclopedia of Tourism
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Economic development is a broad concept with no universally accepted definitions. It generally refers to the economic impacts of tourism on the host destination and region, while also taking into account the speed and extent of the economic transformations associated with its development.

Economic impact

Much work on tourism development focuses on the economic benefits to host destinations, including increased income, taxes, employment, and economic diversification and regeneration. Tourism, as an economic activity, is being used to help support or bolster an economy and regional development. Tourist spending is a prime source of foreign exchange earnings and fiscal revenue for the host government. As a consumption activity, tourism leads to the redistribution of national income between tourist-generating markets and receiving destinations.

Further, tourism contributes to diffusing technical knowledge, stimulating research and development, and accumulating human capital. Consequently,...

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Correspondence to Fang Meng .

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Meng, F. (2016). Economic development. In: Jafari, J., Xiao, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Tourism. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01384-8_63

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