GEO-SPATIAL MAPPING AND SUITABILITY ANALYSIS OF ECOTOURISM RESOURCES IN NASARAWA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Ecotourism has become an important strategy for promoting biodiversity conservation, rural development, and sustainable economic growth. However, the spatial distribution and development potential of ecotourism resources in Nasarawa State, Nigeria, remain inadequately documented. This study assessed the spatial distribution of ecotourism resources, evaluated the major challenges affecting ecotourism development, and identified priority strategies for sustainable ecotourism planning. Spatial data were collected using a Garmin 76CSx Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver and analysed in ArcGIS 10.1, while socio-economic data were obtained from 382 valid questionnaires administered to host communities and tourism stakeholders. Descriptive statistics, Relative Importance Index (RII), Pearson Product–Moment Correlation, and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) were employed for data analysis. The results revealed that ecotourism resources are spatially clustered, with the northern highlands, central riverine corridor, and southeastern geo-cultural zone representing the most important tourism areas. Respondents identified insecurity (Mean = 4.65), inadequate funding (Mean = 4.63), poor road access (Mean = 4.52), and lack of government support (Mean = 4.50) as the major constraints to ecotourism development. Improved security (Mean = 4.37; RII = 0.87) and infrastructure development (Mean = 4.23; RII = 0.85) emerged as the highest-priority strategies for sustainable tourism planning. The factor analysis confirmed that the proposed strategies constitute a reliable framework for sustainable ecotourism development. The study concludes that integrating GIS and GPS technologies with stakeholder perceptions provides an effective decision-support framework for ecotourism planning, conservation, and investment in Nasarawa State.