Territorial Analysis of the Survival of European Aid to Rural Tourism (Leader Method in SW Spain)

Ángela Engelmo Moriche, Ana Nieto Masot and Julián Mora Aliseda
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Ángela Engelmo Moriche: Department of Art and Territorial Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Ana Nieto Masot: Department of Art and Territorial Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Julián Mora Aliseda: Department of Art and Territorial Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, Spain

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 10, 1-24

Abstract: Due to the problems of the European rural environment, the European Union introduced territorial development strategies called the Leader Method (LEADER Initiatives and the now extinct PRODER Operational Programs implemented only in Spanish territory). The objective was to activate the economic development of these areas, to maintain the population and to slow down the migration and aging processes. During the last 25 years, these initiatives have been implemented in European rural areas, and more particularly in Extremadura, establishing new activities such as rural tourism, which has become the economic backbone of many families, complementing agricultural incomes. The development of rural tourism has led to the implementation of accommodation and catering services throughout Extremadura, adapting to the new tourist demands. However, after 25 years, its sustainability has been very different, with contextual variables that have conditioned its success. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the economic sustainability of the tourism offer financed by Leader and the extinct Proder in order to identify the factors that have determined its success in a territory with very diverse characteristics. For this purpose, a methodology based on two statistical analysis techniques (principal component analysis and cluster analysis) has been designed to establish behavioral patterns through the different context variables used. The results obtained have shown that factors such as investment, location, the presence of protected resources and accessibility are determining factors for the survival of the tourism offer.

Keywords: Leader Method; rural tourism; survival of tourist infrastructures (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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