Forum (Spotlight Weekly)

Tourism: Promise of Prosperity

By HARI MAN LAMA

The last quarter of the 20th century witnessed both rapid expansion and slackness in Nepal's tourism sector. The boom can be attributed to the infrastructure built over the last three decades, especially in the transport and communication sectors. Though tourism as an industrial scheme took an appreciable upward trend during this period, it has been on the decline lately due to the country's political situation. Failure to maintain law and order in some parts of the kingdom and wrong information spread at the international level are damaging Nepal's ability to attract visitors from abroad. The domestic administration and diplomatic missions abroad have not contributed positively to boosting the inflow of tourists.

The development of tourism is associated with the identity of the country, which governs the interests of incoming visitors. This corresponds to an expected return on the investment a traveler incurred during travel to his place/country of interest, be it in quantitative or qualitative terms. He/she must be satisfied with the outcome from his/her expenditure throughout the tour. Thus, tourism is a matter of give and take between the visitor's place or country of origin and destination.

The benefits of tourism in Nepal are threefold: it enhances Nepal's exposure to the external world; it brings monetary benefits to the country; and it generates employment opportunities in the service sector. It is through tourism development that a small, beautiful and developing country like Nepal can gain positive exposure internationally.

While the costs and benefits of tourism are being extensively debated in some parts of the world, there is little doubt that this sector is a promoter of international friendship and understanding and a catalyst for development. Foreign currency income from tourists has multiple positive effects from the local to national economy. In real terms, this means the benefits of tourism go from higher bracketed people like owners of five-star deluxe hotels, travel, tour and trekking entrepreneurs to the local shopkeepers, trekking porters, and guides in addition to those engaged in the promotion of the native culture.

The income derived from tourism is a potential source of foreign exchange for Nepal, which has mostly been suffering from imbalance of trade. Tourism plays a vital role in creating employment through a diversified scheme. Thus, the formulation and implementation of a rational tourism policy is one of the gateways for all-round national development.

The travelers' needs and interests are basic components tourism entrepreneurs and concerned government agencies should identify and pay attention to. The visitors leave their country of origin for other destinations to see what is not available in their homeland. The destination should have things to offer to the newcomers in a peaceful atmosphere and friendly manner. Nepal, fortunately, is blessed with the abundance of nature and hospitable people. The country has in plenty what is rare in many parts of the world. But, unfortunately, Nepal has not been able to prove its own rich endowment and resourcefulness to the world. This situation needs to be viewed from both policy and tourism entrepreneur's perspective in order to maximize benefits.

A tourist is not only a traveler but also an agent of exchange between the countries of origin and destination. In this capacity, he spreads the message of development and acts as a communicator of peace and friendship across political boundaries. Peace and sustainability in development at both the sending and receiving ends are inseparable components of tourism development. In such a context, tourism contributes to peace, which is a prerequisite to development.

Development has been a national priority for quite a long time in Nepal. Peace was the identity of Nepal to the outside world for many years, barring a few sporadic incidents. This, unfortunately, is no longer the case. The absence of peace has threatened development. Much of the painstakingly built infrastructure has been lost. Tourism has been negatively affected not only because of the problem as it is conceded but also because of lack of awareness and wrong impression that has prevailed abroad. This is attributed to lack of efforts on the part of the concerned government agencies within and abroad. Tourism can flourish when there is peace. On the other hand, large inflows of tourists directly contribute to bringing peace if the correct message is communicated.

World Tourism Day, celebrated throughout the world on September 27, could not produce much excitement this year in Nepal since it took place in chaos. If tourism were booming, it would have been celebrated in a grand manner. September 27 should be a day not only for conventional rituals but also one for a reaffirmation of the commitment to make concerted efforts to enhance the prestige of the country by making tourists believe that Nepal is one of the best destinations on earth.

(Lama is a tourism entrepreneur)