A seminar titled ‘Roadmap for Tourism Recovery: Present Bangladesh Context’ was organized by the Bangladesh Monitor at the Sheraton Dhaka today.
Seminar, Peter A. Semone, Chairman, Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) was the chief guest on the occasion. The keynote paper was presented by Syed Ghulam Qadir, General Secretary WTN Bangladesh chapter, while Kazi Wahidul Alam, Editor of the Bangladesh Monitor moderated the session.
Syed Qadir in his keynote paper talked about the present situation of tourism in Bangladesh. During the last year, according to Government statistics, a total of 555,000 foreigners visited Bangladesh and the tourism sector’s contribution to the GDP was 3.2%. Bangladesh Tourism is mostly dependent on Domestic Tourism. Business travelers, officials, and VFR constitute the most of the international arrival. There is no authentic information or statistics about leisure travelers.
He also talked about how the Bangladesh tourism sector suffered in the past due to natural as well as political crises. He also analyzed the present situation in the Bangladesh tourism sector following the August mass uprising. Hotel occupancy dropped to 10-15% , which has now improved to 30-35% on average. Many bookings from foreign tourists were cancelled.
In the keynote paper, few recommendations were made for quick recovery of the tourism sector in the country. The recommendations are- the adoption of tourism crisis management plan, providing assurance of safety for travelers, quick dissemination of information, engaging PR and branding companies for promotion of Bangladesh tourism, attending tourism fairs in different countries, organizing road shows and FAM trips, establishing e-visa system, appointing tourism official in Bangladesh missions abroad, engage Biman in tourism promotion, utilizing the NRBs, recognizing inbound tour operators.
Akhtaruzzaman Khan Kabir, former CEO, Bangladesh Tourism Board; Shahid Hamid, President, PATA Bangladesh Chapter; Md. Masud Hossain, Managing Director, Bengal Tours; Taufiq Rahman, Chief Executive of Journey Plus, and others took part in the discussion.
The seminar was supported by the Sheraton Dhaka.