COMMUNITY TOURISM, the concept of localising the industry that was introduced a few years ago, has been branded a fa?ade by many Jamaicans who are fighting unsuccessfully to get at least a crumb from the multibillion-dollar tourism pie.

Just last week, some residents of the greater Allman Town area of Kingston threatened to disrupt the staging of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Cricket World Cup (CWC) if they were not made to feel a part of the event.

Craft vendors at the Kingston Craft Market, and persons as far as St. Thomas, say they were bamboozled into thinking they were going to benefit from Jamaica's hosting of the ICC Cricket World Cup.

However, with the first warm-up game due to take place today in Trelawny, shouts have come from many that community tourism is nothing but a fancy term. Except for citizes of Trelawny who are hosting warm-up matches and the opening ceremony, many ordinary persons from other parishes have expressed the fear that they will not feel the trickle- down benefit of Jamaica's $7 billion World Cup investment.

Courtney Brown, regional director of the Social Development Commission (SDC), told The Gleaner in November that the commission was looking to use the CWC to market Kingston as a destination.

"The world will be focused on Jamaica and this is our opportunity to sell Jamaica, moreso Kingston, as a destination," Mr. Brown said during an interview at the SDC.

He pointed to the rich history of Kingston, St. Andrew and St. Thomas as experiences being craved by tourists these days.

"These areas have potential and the Cricket World Cup will be one way to expose them," he said then.

However, with the Cricket World Cup due to start officially next Sunday, these early visions are like distant dreams for many residents in several Kingston and St. Andrew communities.

Lawman Lynch, general secretary for the Greater Allman Town Community Benevolent Society, say much has been said about the benefits to be had from Cricket World Cup, there is no light at the end of the tunnel for residents of communities surrounding Sabina Park.

"This thing about community tourism is a facade, its a lie," he said after learning that the Jamaica Culture Plaza which they had hoped to open in Kingston Gardens, for residents to expose their wares to tourists, will not come to fruition because the SDC put their money into another project.

"The only association that will benefit from Cricket World Cup is the New Kingston Civic Association," he said.

Director of Corporate Communications in the Ministry of Tourism, Gerry McDaniel, has not denied these claims.

"Historically the benefits of tourism have not been felt by everyone," Mr. McDaniel notes.

However, he says one of the five tenets of the tourism master plan is is to make the industry and inclusive one.

Five communities, Port Royal, Tivoli gardens, Trench Town and Allman Town were selected by the SDC as theme communities for Cricket World Cup. The idea was for these communities to showcase things uniquely theirs in order to build them through community tourism. The SDC however shelved this project due to lack of community support.