ECO-TOURISM AS A STIMULATION FOR TOURISM ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT – THE EXAMPLE OF THE MUCIPALITY OF GEVGELIJA

The purpose of the conducted practical research presented in the paper consists in assessing the real situation from the aspect on the development of the ecotourism in the municipality of Gevgelija and confirmation of the hypothesis that ecotourism sector is a developmental concept that enables achieving sustainable economic development (Butcher,2007). A survey questionnaire consisting of 20 questions has been used. The survey was conducted of 52 respondents in the period from 1.10.2019. until 30.11.2019. on the territory of the Gevgelija. We used programs SPSS, and made Spearman test of correlation rs, and test of Ordinal Regression. The primary goal of the conducted practical research was to assess the willingness of students in the development of ecotourism. The results obtained during the practical research allow to draw conclusions and guidelines that can imply certain behaviours and activities contributing to the development of ecotourism in the Republic of Macedonia and using opportunities for achieving sustainable economic development (Hill, 2009) The basic limitations was number of respondents. The original value of this study is confirmed through the obtained results from the conducted research confirmed the fact that ecotourism as an alternative form for tourism development and a modern concept for achieving sustainable development. Benefits for the local community that are expected from the development of eco tourism include maintenance of biodiversity, benefits for the local population, a high level of responsibility of tourism enterprises and employees working in this sector, and an active role of the local population.