Tourism sector a driving force

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Thursday, 13 January 2011

Author / Source : Beenish Qaiser

Dhaka, Jan 12: As concluded by the American Journalist Max Lerner, “The tourist who moves about to see and hear and open himself to all the influences of the places which condense centuries of human greatness is only a man in search of excellence.” Based on the above observational quote, it can easily be determined that tourism is not just recreation and vacationing in the Bahamas, so to speak, but a ladder to acquire brilliance and knowledge in abundance, as well as a driving force for fiscal enhancement of a nation. In this day and age, tourism has outshined all the other sectors of the economy and has transcended as the most significant economic activity in the world. The tourism industry has managed to tremendously impact the economic, social and cultural growth, both globally and nationally. For at least one third of the developing countries in the world, tourism receipts are the main source of export revenue. Moreover, the tourism industry is seen to generate substantial economic benefits, especially for the developing countries. For the least developed countries (LDCs) Bangladesh in particular, tourism is considered to be a fundamental economic factor.
Bangladesh is a glorious nation with a rich cultural legacy, housing numerous breathtaking and mesmerizing sights and sounds, such as the rare beauty spot of sunrise and sunset in fascinating Kuakata, the magnificent Sundarbans - abode of the Royal Bengal Tiger, the longest beach in Cox's Bazar, the oldest archaeological site in Mahasthangarh, the lavish tea gardens in Sylhet and various other enchanting symbols of cultural and historical heritage. In more than two thousand years of its history, many eminent dynasties of kings and sultans have ruled and gone leaving their mark in the form of grand cities, monuments and barren ruins, still standing strong in many parts of the country. Most importantly, the simple and amicable natives of Bangladesh, be it the occupants of the urban areas or folk of its villages and tribes isolated from modern hustle bustle, by their own distinct ethnicity and way of life - make Bangladesh a unique tourist haven. Impressed and captivated by this magnanimous existence, undiscovered charm, beauty and diverse traditions of Bangladesh, Majbritt Thomsen, a Danish expatriate with an MA in Tourism, has been living and traveling in Bangladesh for the past two years. Majbritt Thomsen created a website 'Views on Tourism' with the aim of building a cyber bank platform for Asian and international articles on topics and issues related to tourism development. This site now includes more than 50 links to international knowledge sources, where Bangladeshi tourism enthusiasts can look for further inspiration and information. The articles range from best practices, marketing, management, development, IT, education, policy, market knowledge, cooperation and customer opinion.
Majbritt Thomsen has been recently joined by Usha Shree, an Indian national with more than 10 years of international experience in the tourism and hospitality industry in this venture to further expand and enhance the website and reach out to more and more cultures. Majbritt Thomsen observed that despite being a comparatively small part of the economy, having the least arrivals and the lowest revenue generated from the tourism sector in South Asia, Bangladesh’s tourism industry has been rapidly evolving since the 1990’s. She quoted from Lonely Planet in support of her observation; "Last year, Lonely Planet, which is the absolute world leader of publishing travel guides and guidebooks, recommended Bangladesh as one of the top ten interesting travel destinations in 2009. The country introduction by Lonely Planet is unplayable in terms of national image branding: Let's get this straight from the start. Bangladesh is not a country of disappointment as portrayed in 'Brick Lane' or by the international media, nor is it merely the poorly endowed cousin of India. Instead, Bangladesh is a revelation that actually leaves India looking a little worse for a wear. Any visitor who ventures here will return home with stories so improbable that claiming you have a pet unicorn is likely to be met with fewer disbelieving shakes of the head.' - Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2009, p6." With their Bangladeshi connection, these two aspiring females have joined  hands in collaboration to launch new services in the near future to achieve sustainable tourism in Bangladesh through development training, seminars, business/ investor presentations, designing tourism products and services, creating partnerships, holding tourism related events, forming a knowledge pool comprising of tourism related members, developing customer support services, travel writers, photographers, educators, etc. to create a strong tourism evolution in Bangladesh and transform it into a top favorite tourist destination on the map.
The tourism sector acts as a driving force for economic development of developing countries by contributing to the following primary objectives: the generation of income, employment opportunities and acquiring foreign exchange earnings. Tourism expenditures and the export related goods and services generate income for the host economy and in turn kindle the investment required to finance growth in other economic sectors. Thus, governments can earn their revenue by imposing tax on the prime products and services demanded by the tourists. Taking into account tourism's multidimensional effects, such as the balance of payments situation, diversification of the economy, expansion of revenues, and generation of employment opportunities, Bangladesh should exceedingly focus on its tourism industry. Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) is making rigorous efforts for the development of tourism by devising new and improved strategies to enthrall and lure in tourists from around the world.
Boost in economic growth, disposable income and leisure time, political stability, and dynamic tourism campaigns have fuelled the progression of tourism. This in turn has given rise to the construction of state of the art hotels and resorts with foreign investment especially along side the beach in Cox’s Bazar.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, Bangladesh’s travel and tourism was expected to generate BDT266 billion (US$3,786 million) of economic activity (GDP) in 2010. Bangladesh's 984,000 jobs resulting from the Travel and Tourism industry account for 1.3% of total employment in 2010. By 2020, the industry indicates a forecast up to a total of 1,276,000 jobs. The contribution of the Travel & Tourism Economy to employment is expected to rise from 3.1% of total employment, 2,373,000 jobs or 1 in every 32.3 jobs in 2010, to 3.2% of total employment, 3,114,000 jobs, or 1 in every 31.1 jobs by 2020.
Like various developed countries, Bangladesh has also managed to set up traveling websites and portals to attract and assist tourists in deciding on desirable and appropriate destinations. These websites offer the best hotel matches fit to cater their financial and recreational requirements. Some of the more advanced and dexterous travel websites have also included a section for customer reviews and feedback regarding their services, hotel experience, places visited and so on. This is an innovative and dynamic way to have direct consumer interaction and first hand observation to improve quality.