Tour guiding

associations

Introduction
in order to improve individual guide performance, industry-wide
performance and enhancing visitor experience. Tour guiding
stakeholders are required to adopted the following mechanisms
Codes of conduct
Professional associations/ tour guiding association
Awards of excellence
Training
Professional certification
Licensing

Tour guiding associations

Tour guiding associations refers to the Professional organizations
founded for the aims of fighting for tour guides interests, uniting tour
guides and promoting the guiding industry and elevating its image.
Example of tour guiding associations
A. World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (WFTGA)
B. International Association Of Mountain Guide Associations (The
IFMGA)
C. European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations
D. The National Federation of Tourist Guide Associations-USA
E. Tanzania Tour Guides Association (TTGA)
F. Zanzibar Association of tour guides (ZATOGA)

Levels of tour guiding

association
Global level
World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (WFTGA)
International Association Of Mountain Guide Associations (The IFMGA)
Regional level
European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations
National level
Tanzania Tour Guides Association (TTGA)
Kenya Professional Safari Guides Association: KPSGA
Uganda Safari Guides Association (USAGA)
Local level
Kilimanjaro Guides Association
Zanzibar Association of tour guides (ZATOGA)

Objectives of tour guiding

associations
1. To achieve legal and professional status and recognition.
2. To professionally bring together a group of Guides working within the
same town, region or country.
3. To act as the spokesman for the majority of Guides in order to
promote the professional, economic, and social standing and interests of
Guides.
4. To promote co-operation between Guides, other individuals and
bodies involved in tourism and local authorities.
5. To improve and enhance the professional training of Guides
6. To represent Guides in International Organizations, Federations and
other professional bodies.

Membership Benefits
There are a lot of benefits that tour guides get once
Being a member in certain tour guiding associations.
Participation in International convention in decision
making
Lectures and Workshops papers
Exchange of experiences
Training courses for tourist guides and tourist guide
trainers
Access to tour guide Publications
Expanding Networking

Contributions of tour guiding

associations
Tour guiding associations have played important roles in
ensure service quality in tour guiding activities include:
Developing and emphasizing codes of ethics
Provision of training opportunities to the member state
partners
Providing an expert advice and consultation to the
training organization and government agencies
Marketing and promotion of tourism product
Encouraging sustainable tourism principles among tour
guides

Challenges Tour Guiding

Associations
Most of tour guiding association especial in developing
countries are faces with variety of the challenges that hamper
association to achieve their objectives those includes:Small membership number
Limited finance/ lack of enough funds
Lack of power to enforce its activities
Poor government support
Depending voluntary contributions of some members
Lack of well trained staff to run the associations
Poor utilization of funds

World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations

(WFTGA)

The World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations is a

non-profit making professional organization dedicated to
the promotion of high standards of training and ethics
within the profession.
The WFTGA was formed in 1985 in Vienna and serves as
the Global Forum for Tourist Guides.
The official language used by the Federation is English
language.

The WFTGA groups together, around the world

tourist guide associations
individual tourist guides where no association exists
tourism partners and member associations
educational institutes in tourism for tourist guides
convention and visitors bureaux and affiliate members
who have direct or indirect association with tourist
guides.

The aims of the World Federation of Tourist Guide

Associations
to establish contact with tourist guide associations
throughout the world and to reinforce their professional ties,
to represent professional tourist guides internationally and
to promote and protect their interests,
to enhance the image of the profession,
to promote a universal code of ethics and skills,
to raise, encourage and establish the highest standards of
professionalism,
to develop international training, and improving the quality
of guiding through education,
to facilitate the exchange of information among members.

International Association Of
Mountain Guide Associations
(The IFMGA

The IFMGA is an international association of mountain

guide associations from all over the world.
The IFMGA, founded in 1965 by guides from Austria,
France, Switzerland and Italy, is currently a body of
mountain guide associations from more than 20 countries
in Europe, Asia, the Americas, and Oceania, representing
a total of almost 6000 guides.

Aims of the association

Regulation of the mountain guide profession on a global scale
Representing the interests of the mountain guiding profession to
government agencies
Support of a standard law and regulation for the mountain guide
profession
Determination of mandatory international training standards
Reciprocal acceptance of the qualification
Support of free professional activity of the mountain guides
Support of national associations, especially the one under construction
Providing services and assistance for mountain guides