ECOTOURISM VALUES AND SUSTAINABILITY OF OBUDU CATTLE RANCH, NIGERIA

Abstract

This paper estimated the total recreation use value to the eco-tourists of the Obudu Cattle Ranch
(OCR) and assessed the sustainability potential of the ranch. An on-site individual observation travel
cost method, count data distribution and a discounting framework were used to estimate a measure of
the present recreation use of the ranch and the total discounted recreation value for a medium-term of
50-year period. Budgetary analysis was used to determine the net farm income/ hectare which was
compared to the Total Recreation Value/hectare and so determine the problem of sustainability. The
empirical estimates of the average representative visitor’s present equivalent surplus willingness to
pay based on the impact assumption of closure or loss of access to the ranch were N139.00. This, for
a visit of three days per eco-tourist to the ranch, was N3,417.00. This translated to current recreation
value for 516 recreation days in a year to N101,088,528.00. The future long-term (fifty years) utilities
derivable from the OCR based on the current total recreation value was N442,406,302.38. The annual
net farm income/hectare from the major alternative land use of arable crop farming was higher than
that of the total recreation value/hectare. This brings about sustainability problems as communities
around the ranch are likely to encroach on the ranch area for food crop production to sustain their
livelihoods. The sustainability problem will equally be sustained if government emphasizes the descrip-
tive approach based on market rates for determining future discount rates rather than the lower future
discount rates of the prescriptive approach in the appraisal of ecotourism projects that depict
*economics of happinessâ€.