It's happening because their governments are pursuing the tourist dollar, and need more land to develop the industry. Tourism has often been regarded as The Answer to the economic ills suffered by developing countries in the decades since independence. Fluctuating prices for their exports coupled with rising interest rates on money borrowed from international agencies, have left many countries with crippling burdens of debt. These problems have been exacerbated by the rapid increase in population which has led to rising unemployment and destitution, and many governments have been forced to reassess their development strategies. Diversification is seen as essential, but with a large unskilled workforce, few natural resources and small domestic markets for manufactured goods, the opportunities are extremely limited.
Tourism is seen as a viable and attractive alternative to industrialization.
It is believed that tourism will strengthen the economic base by stimulating activity in the agricultural, commercial, and service sectors. It is labour intensive, offering jobs in construction and service industries, as well as direct employment in the hotels themselves. By exploiting these factors, and offering generous development incentives, Third World governments have successfully attracted foreign investment to the industry, and for many countries tourism is now the highest earner of foreign exchange. The tourist industry is greedy for land. It is needed not just for the construction of hotels, but also for leisure complexes such as golf courses, and for the development of the infrastructure.