The Magic Towns Committees and tourism development: Tepotzotlán and El Oro, Estado de Mexico

Abstract

In México, tourism plays an important role as a complementary economic activity in the rural sector, which is why it takes on relevance in the country’s Tourism Policy. As a result of this, financial supports are destined and programs are created like the one called Pueblos Mágicos, Magic Towns. Estado de México has five towns that received this title, thanks to the presence of natural, cultural and human resources, among others, and because of the integration of the Magic Town Committee (Comité Pueblo Mágico, CPM), one of the non-negotiable requirements; the objective of this study is to analyze the participation of the CPMs of Tepotzotlán and El Oro to highlight the contribution that they make to the development of the localities. Surveys were applied (245) to different actors and were analyzed through the descriptive method. The results show that: a) the CPMs lack a work plan to allow the rural communities to be involved; and b) there is disinformation regarding the reach of the program in the local population. The conclusion is that the lack of clarity of the operational guidelines of the Magic Towns Program and the scarce evaluations of the program result in the lack of fulfillment of the program’s objectives and in the designation only benefitting urban sectors of the municipality, broadening the inequality gap with the rural population.