Tourism and socio-economic mobility
Tuesday, 25 March 2008
Mohammad Shahidul Islam
A COMMUNITY, with a sense of feasting and merry-making, long ago, created interest for people to gather to spend time and buy their products. Townsfolk realised that visitors from afar would need places to relax. Someone knew enough to organise events to represent culture and heritage. That person was a creative thinker. He knew that merry-makers would pay to watch the sun rising as well as setting.
Visitors created opportunities for the host communities. Entrepreneurs entered the scene to ensure sustainable festivals and the market place was the result. The community got a commercial centre. Lodgings became inns and eateries. The sun could be trusted to rise and sink without fail. This was the place where tourism was born.
It was the simple model of tourism development.
But it has gone a long way since. It became big business. Tourism developers know marketing. Their marketing activities include recruitment as well as the creation of products that entice the tourists to linger their visits and seek leisure activities that cost them their money. But people love to spend for all practical purposes, tourism development and tourism promotion are the same thing. Promotion is an element of marketing.
Economic developers are good at marketing also. In areas of the world where the Industrial Age has ended, there is only a semantic distinction between tourism developers and economic developers, in terms of how they function to create prospects. In fact, industrial developers in North America only began to change their identity to "economic developers" about three decades ago. Most people worldwide still think of economic development in terms of industrial development.
Economic developers, who switched towards industrial development often refer to themselves as community developers when they are engaged in activities related to building local infrastructure. Economic developers often refer to themselves as product developers when they are oriented toward tourism development and engage themselves in readying their communities. Splitting economic development activities into "industrial" or "tourism" is of little importance until it causes confusion for those who own opportunities and have decisions to make that affect locations or expansions and start-ups. The smaller is the community, the more important it is for the local economic developer to be capable of addressing the needs of all types of prospects.
Entrepreneurs are more likely to be involved in tourism-related product development than corporate executives, responsible for relocating or expanding operations. Entrepreneurs are also more likely to be unfamiliar with the nuances of the economic development process as it relates to finding resources and assistance. Entrepreneurs, investors and property or project developers are needed for a "whole" tourism-related prospect.
Tourism expenditures as well as the export and import of related goods and services generate income to the host economy. It can stimulate the investment necessary to finance growth in other economic sectors. Some countries seek to accelerate this growth by requiring visitors to bring in a certain amount of foreign currency for each day of their stay and do not allow them to take it back at the end of the trip.
Government revenues from the tourism sector can be categorised as direct and indirect contributions. Direct contributions are generated by taxes on incomes from tourism employment and tourism businesses, and by direct levies on tourists such as departure taxes. Indirect contributions come from taxes and duties levied on goods and services supplied to tourists.
A rapid expansion of international tourism has led to significant employment creation. For example, the hotel accommodation sector alone provided around millions of jobs worldwide last year.
Tourism can generate jobs directly through hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, taxis, and souvenir sales, and indirectly through the supply of goods and services needed by tourism- related businesses. According to the WTO, tourism supports some 7.0 per cent of the world's workers.
Tourism encourages the local government bodies and autonomous organisations to improve infrastructure like water and sewage systems, roads, power supply, telephone and public transport network, all of which, in turn, contribute to local economic activities, and better living conditions for the populations. Tourism revenues are often used to measure the economic value of protected areas
Other local revenues cannot be easily quantified, as not all tourist expenditures are registered. Tourism also creates informal employment for street vendors, informal guides, rickshaw pullers and others. The positive side of informal or unaccounted for, is that the money is returned to the local economy with a multiplier effect, as it is spent again and again.
The government's plan for changing Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) into National Tourism Authority (NTA) could revolutionise the total tourism scenario in the country.
The NTA would be given administrative power to monitor hospitality and tourism business as well as promotion and exploration of tourism in Bangladesh. Revenue earning would help boost socio-economic mobility and generate employment opportunities even in remote areas. Tourism in Bangladesh can now be expected get a real professional touch to facilitate real tourism development. Tourism will grow rapidly.
The writer, a tourism professional can be reached at
mohd-s-islam@myway.com
A COMMUNITY, with a sense of feasting and merry-making, long ago, created interest for people to gather to spend time and buy their products. Townsfolk realised that visitors from afar would need places to relax. Someone knew enough to organise events to represent culture and heritage. That person was a creative thinker. He knew that merry-makers would pay to watch the sun rising as well as setting.
Visitors created opportunities for the host communities. Entrepreneurs entered the scene to ensure sustainable festivals and the market place was the result. The community got a commercial centre. Lodgings became inns and eateries. The sun could be trusted to rise and sink without fail. This was the place where tourism was born.
It was the simple model of tourism development.
But it has gone a long way since. It became big business. Tourism developers know marketing. Their marketing activities include recruitment as well as the creation of products that entice the tourists to linger their visits and seek leisure activities that cost them their money. But people love to spend for all practical purposes, tourism development and tourism promotion are the same thing. Promotion is an element of marketing.
Economic developers are good at marketing also. In areas of the world where the Industrial Age has ended, there is only a semantic distinction between tourism developers and economic developers, in terms of how they function to create prospects. In fact, industrial developers in North America only began to change their identity to "economic developers" about three decades ago. Most people worldwide still think of economic development in terms of industrial development.
Economic developers, who switched towards industrial development often refer to themselves as community developers when they are engaged in activities related to building local infrastructure. Economic developers often refer to themselves as product developers when they are oriented toward tourism development and engage themselves in readying their communities. Splitting economic development activities into "industrial" or "tourism" is of little importance until it causes confusion for those who own opportunities and have decisions to make that affect locations or expansions and start-ups. The smaller is the community, the more important it is for the local economic developer to be capable of addressing the needs of all types of prospects.
Entrepreneurs are more likely to be involved in tourism-related product development than corporate executives, responsible for relocating or expanding operations. Entrepreneurs are also more likely to be unfamiliar with the nuances of the economic development process as it relates to finding resources and assistance. Entrepreneurs, investors and property or project developers are needed for a "whole" tourism-related prospect.
Tourism expenditures as well as the export and import of related goods and services generate income to the host economy. It can stimulate the investment necessary to finance growth in other economic sectors. Some countries seek to accelerate this growth by requiring visitors to bring in a certain amount of foreign currency for each day of their stay and do not allow them to take it back at the end of the trip.
Government revenues from the tourism sector can be categorised as direct and indirect contributions. Direct contributions are generated by taxes on incomes from tourism employment and tourism businesses, and by direct levies on tourists such as departure taxes. Indirect contributions come from taxes and duties levied on goods and services supplied to tourists.
A rapid expansion of international tourism has led to significant employment creation. For example, the hotel accommodation sector alone provided around millions of jobs worldwide last year.
Tourism can generate jobs directly through hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, taxis, and souvenir sales, and indirectly through the supply of goods and services needed by tourism- related businesses. According to the WTO, tourism supports some 7.0 per cent of the world's workers.
Tourism encourages the local government bodies and autonomous organisations to improve infrastructure like water and sewage systems, roads, power supply, telephone and public transport network, all of which, in turn, contribute to local economic activities, and better living conditions for the populations. Tourism revenues are often used to measure the economic value of protected areas
Other local revenues cannot be easily quantified, as not all tourist expenditures are registered. Tourism also creates informal employment for street vendors, informal guides, rickshaw pullers and others. The positive side of informal or unaccounted for, is that the money is returned to the local economy with a multiplier effect, as it is spent again and again.
The government's plan for changing Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) into National Tourism Authority (NTA) could revolutionise the total tourism scenario in the country.
The NTA would be given administrative power to monitor hospitality and tourism business as well as promotion and exploration of tourism in Bangladesh. Revenue earning would help boost socio-economic mobility and generate employment opportunities even in remote areas. Tourism in Bangladesh can now be expected get a real professional touch to facilitate real tourism development. Tourism will grow rapidly.
The writer, a tourism professional can be reached at
mohd-s-islam@myway.com