| Tourism policy is an understudied but increasingly important factor in development studies. The World Travel and Tourism Council estimates that tourism activities create one of the largest industries in the world and contributes 9.1% to the global GDP, but little study has been done on the public policy initiatives that have created and maintain it. This thesis examines the nature of state-directed tourism development and evaluates its success in Cancun, Mexico. Through an analysis of qualitative and quantitative data and comparison studies of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, the study seeks to understand the unique nature of Cancun's success. Drawing from literature spanning colonial legacies to Peter Evans' Embedded Autonomy , It concludes that the unique policy factors of a "political vacuum", international private sector involvement, and international organizational funding have determined the positive growth of the planned tourism destination. |
