Tour operators call for tourism board overhaul

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FE Report Tourism in Bangladesh can be taken to the next level if the sector is managed through a partnership between public and private agencies, tour operators said Saturday. They called upon the government to ramp up issuance of on-arrival visas for foreign tourists in line with the countries whose economies rely heavily on tourism revenue. Tourism contributes significantly to the national incomes of 20 out of 49 Least Developed Countries (LDCs), but Bangladesh has failed to harness the opportunity, despite having a number of attractive tourist spots, they said. The comments came at a seminar on "Development of Tourism Sector: Problems and Prospects," organised by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the city. Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister GM Quader was present as the chief guest. President of Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh (TOAB) Hasan Mansur presented the key note paper while President of DCCI Asif Ibrahim delivered the address of welcome. The tour operators said tourism contributed 12 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) last year. They estimated that about half a million tourists visit Bangladesh a year against 950 million global tourists. The average annual income of the country from tourism sector is Tk 55 billion with the involvement of about 1.6 million people in the sector, they mentioned. They said that the number of local and international tourists could easily be boosted by promoting and marketing Cox's Bazar, Sundarbans, and Chittagong Hill Tracts and Sylhet region abroad. Quoting data from the World Tourism Organisation (WTO), the DCCI president said, "Tourism alone produced over US $ 6 trillion in revenue and provided jobs to around 221 million people globally last year." Mr Quader said the government had ordered to establish a tourism cell at the districts level so that the local administration could work in developing and promoting tourism. "Marketing tourism means marketing Bangladesh. Combined efforts are needed to promote the country's tourism," he said. "We have selected some spots for exclusive tourist sites so that the number of foreign tourists can be increased," he said.