Tourism sector should be exploited for employment generation: Study

Bangladesh is yet to tap the potential of tourism sector to achieve its poverty reduction target although the government declared it a thrust sector, which experts say, should be exploited carefully for employment generation both for educated and the underprivileged.

Tourism is a diverse and labour intensive industry that provides a wide range of employment opportunities.

In a study titled Tourism and Poverty Reduction Strategies in the Integrated Framework for the Least Developed Countries, 2011, it was recommended that integration within global tourism networks and practical actions to establish linkages with other sectors of the economy and along tourism value chains are key elements of pro-poor tourism development. A pro-poor tourism approach entails targeted support programmes and increased community participation, it added.

According to the Travel and Tourism Economic Impact, Bangladesh 2014 report of World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) the direct employment in travel and tourism sector was about 1.33 million which is 1.8 per cent of the total employment. This is expected to rise by 4.0 per cent in 2014 and 2.7 per cent per annum to 1.8 million by 2024.

Travel and tourism supported an indirect employment of 2.8 million which is 3.8 per cent of the total employment which is expected to rise by 4.2 per cent in 2014 to 2.96 million and by 3.0 per cent per annum to 3.97 million by 2024 making it 4.2 per cent of the total employment, the study reveals.

Bangladesh tourism Board (BTB) chief executive officer Akhteruzzaman Khan Kabir told the FE tourism is among the major benchmarks for employment generation to achieve the MDG target of poverty reduction. One tourist consumes 11 types of services including transportation, hotel, restaurant, recreation, tourist guide and handicrafts.

He emphasised on development of community based tourism in Bangladesh considering it as a nature based tourist destination. He also stressed on development of area-based tourism product and community involvement in economic activities to achieve inclusive growth target.

Ajiyer Fair-Trade Tourism chief executive officer Shahid Hussain Shamim said any economic activity like tourism has an implication because any action or wish of a tourist translates into a service for which he/she pays.

He too emphasised on development of area based tourism products and community based tourism, by creating awareness at the community level people and coordinated effort by the tourism stakeholders for poverty reduction through tourism.

Mr Shamim has involved 30 families of three villages in Tangail, 10 families in Srimongol, 10 families of Birisiri and four families in Jhikorgachha for homestay of foreign tourists who comes via Ajiyer. Mr Shamim ensures that bed cover and pillow is clean at the house owner of the local weaver, farmer where the tourist will stay. He also directly contributes in constructing the toilet facilities and supervise the food preparation in the poor farmer's house with whom the tourists spend the whole time enjoying his lifestyle and sharing his activities.

"An immense potential has been created for Bangladesh to exploit its tourism sector. For this we do not need to build five stars but carefully presenting the existing people, product and culture we can reach the goal," said Mr Shamim.

Experts say, there are 1800 hotels, motels, restaurants, resorts in prominent cities like Cox's Bazar, Kuakata, Sylhet, Khulna and Dhaka. There are more than 350 registered tour operators and 300 travel agents where about 0.1 million people are directly employed. Wherever there is tourist site, rickshaw pullers, vegetable growers, poultry farmers, vendors, traders, provide services to the tourists. Besides tourist spots, large transportation sector has been developed in the country where about 0.3 million people are employed. Now 1.5 million tourists visit Cox's Bazar annually which will be doubled by 2030 requiring more human resources in the service sector.

The sector still lacks sufficient number of skilled manpower to serve the tourists. The government needs to invest more in human resource development, they added.

Talking to the FE, General Economics Division (GED) of the planning commission member Shamsul Alam said in the sixth five year plan the prime target was to reduce poverty and extreme poverty in Bangladesh for which expansion in all economic sectors will be needed in terms of public investment.

"Tourism, of course, should be a priority for our development recourse. I think the government has provided support for its development after independence overwhelmingly," he said.

Tourism is an important service sector which has immense potential and should get due priority. The government should play important role in expanding tourism sector, but private sector should come forward in a greater way, he added.           

Experts say converting comparative advantages into competitiveness and sustainability require not only a coherent policy framework and a dynamic private sector but also efficient institutions to translate policy measures into programmes.