The recreational value of wetlands: Activities, socio-economic activities and consumers’ surplus around Lake Victoria in Musoma municipality, Tanzania
Wetlands play a big role as the important recreational destinations which contribute to the increase in tourism industry. This paper evaluates the recreational value of Lake Victoria in Musoma Municipality. Primary data were gathered by administering the questionnaire to a sample of 120 recreationists. The socio-economic data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Quantification of wetland benefits was done by using Microsoft Excel. The travel cost method was mainly used to determine the recreational value of the Lake Victoria. Findings show that there were a limited number of recreational activities around the Lake Victoria. Consumer ’s surplus was estimated to Tsh. 1,462,664,555 (US$ 1,044,760) per annum with an average value of Tsh. 9,751,113.3 (US$ 6,965) per hectare per year. Although there is a limited number of recreational activities around the Lake Victoria, policy formulation and project implementation should consider the use and non-use values of LV in order to estimate the social welfare gain or loss with respect to a proposed project or policy.