Assessment Of The Ecotourism Potential Of The Six Western Balkan (WB6) Countries Considering Tourism, Transport, Agriculture And Environment Policies With MOORA Method

20th INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENGINEERING & NATURAL SCIENCES, Ohrid, Makedonya, 23 - 30 Mayıs 2026, ss.170-176, (Tam Metin Bildiri)

Afterwards COVID-19 pandemic, ecotourism has become more prominent. While an increase

in studies on ecotourism has been observed after pandemic, literature review reveals that there

are limited number of studies combining Balkan countries, Multi-Criteria Decision Making

(MCDM) methods, and ecotourism. This study aims to contribute literature by providing a

guide policymakers in strategic decision-making. Land characteristics, eco-cultural heritage,

existence of water resources, wildlife, hiking trails, canyons, deltas, national parks, diving

tourism, farm tourism, education level and awareness of local population are among factors

contributing to region's attractiveness for ecotourism. Furthermore, availability of roads and

infrastructure supports development of ecotourism since ecotourism locations can often be

physically difficult to access due to mountainous, rugged and high altitudes. Policies are

constituted by countries have influence on these factors and affect ecotourism potential of

countries. This study assesses ecotourism potential of Six Western Balkan (WB6) countries

which are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and

Serbia considering policies that affect ecotourism. In this study, Organization for Economic

Cooperation and Development (OECD) Western Balkans Competitiveness Data Hub which

structures competitiveness level of WB6 countries under 15 key policies is utilized while

determining indicators and building dataset. Tourism, transport, agriculture, and environmental

policies are among these policies that directly affect ecotourism. Sub-categories of these

policies which are “sustainable and competitive tourism”, “regulation and connectivity”, “rural

development and infrastructure” and “ecosystem protection”, were considered as indicators. In

this study, while building unique dataset, up-to-date data which belongs to 2024 were collected

regarding four indicators from OECD Western Balkans Competitiveness Data Hub. By

assigning equal weight to each indicator, WB6 countries were ranked according to their

ecotourism potential with applying MOORA method and were ranked from highest to lowest

ecotourism potential as follows: Montenegro, Albania, Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia,

Bosnia and Herzegovina.