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Why is a magnificent golden pagoda, the home of hairs from the head of Buddha, and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, not a tourist attraction?

Because it's in Myanmar, a country of great natural beauty, rich cultural heritage and ancient history, which until recently has been largely shunned by the international tourist trade.

The country formerly known as Burma was under military rule from 1962 to 2011, following one of the world's longest-running civil wars (which is still not resolved). So it is not surprising that most tourists choose to spend their dollars somewhere else in south east Asia.

But tourism has been picking up since Aung San Suu Kyi, after the country's first democratic elections for nearly 50 years, announced that Myanmar would welcome visitors and encouraged them to stay and travel with local tour operators, rather than the unpopular Government-run agencies.

UWA geographer Julian Clifton and colleagues from the University of Kent, England, have just returned from Myanmar where they tested the enthusiasm for the development of community-initiated tourism.

Assistant Professor Clifton has spent 10 years studying the impact of eco-tourism in places such as Indonesia and the Seychelles.

"We had tacit approval from the Myanmar government to come to Yangon (formerly known as Rangoon) and talk to the local tour operators about tourism options for sustainable livelihoods," he said.

"There is a lot of genuine NGO activity in Myanmar but still a lot of government repression and control. But the country desperately needs money and my colleagues and I see community-based tourism as a great opportunity for this country."

Dr Clifton said Myanmar was rare among south east Asian countries in having English as its second language and a good system of railways, both advantages for foreign tourists.

"There are natural attractions including extensive coral reefs, although I don't know if it's been overfished," he said. "There are magnificent pagodas - Buddhist temples - like the golden one in Yangon called Shwedagon, which is coated in real gold and is the repository for eight hairs said to have belonged to the Buddha, which was built over two thousand years before Christ.  But you go to this pagoda and there is nothing about its history or heritage in English or any other foreign language, because overseas tourists just don't go there."

Dr Clifton and his colleagues want to change that and are seeking funding to return to Myanmar to run workshops to help local people lay the foundations for a thriving tourist industry.

At their first meeting they expected about 10 people from the state and private sector, but it grew to 60 people who were all very enthusiastic.  The meeting was covered on their national television news .

"In terms of religion and other cultural aspects, the people of Myanmar are similar to the people of Thailand, but they would prefer to not see tourism in Myanmar go the way of Thailand" he said.

If Dr Clifton and his team can secure funding, they hope to help the people of Myanmar develop a much more sustainable form of tourism.