Poor connectivity hampers tourism growth

Poor connectivity is hindering the growth of the country’s tourism industry. Though this problem has been a matter of long-standing discussions, no headway has been made yet in finding a solution.

The Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, however, has kept up its efforts. Akhtaruzzaman Khan Kabir, chairman of the corporation, said: “We are working with the local government to develop infrastructure like roads so that tourists can smoothly reach their destinations.”

Researchers, however, said apart from infrastructure facilities, it was also necessary to make utilities such as water and healthcare available to tourists. 

The tourism ministry has discussed the issue with other ministries, but no headway has been made yet. The National Tourism Policy, which was revised in 2010, emphasises the importance of inter-ministerial co-ordination to facilitate the implementation of projects meant to link tourist spots.

Dr Syed Rashidul Hasan, a teacher at the Tourism and Hospitality Management department of Dhaka University, told The Independent that at least 15 to 17 ministries were directly or indirectly related to the development activities aimed at improving the connectivity of tourist spots.

It was difficult for the tourism ministry to bring them together, he said, and felt the Prime Minister’s initiative was needed to ensure coordination among the various ministries for the sake of the growth of the tourism industry.

“If a tourism development committee, led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is formed, the industry will develop rapidly,” Hasan opined.

Tourism experts feel 17 ministries needed to work together to lend greater connectivity to the tourist spots and attract foreign tourists.

The foreign, home, finance, road transport and bridges, forest and environment, and health ministries should coordinate among themselves to provide enhanced connectivity, security, and attraction to the places of tourist interest.

In the absence of such cooperation, the development of the tourism industry was bound to face hurdles, they added.

Insiders of the tourism industry say because of the dearth of proper infrastructural facilities, ‘Birishiri’ in Netrokona district is seldom visited by outsiders.

Birishiri has the only ‘China Matir Pahar’ (hill of China clay) in the country. The region also has a tribal research institute. Ruins of the Tong Movement, Hajong Palli and the Someshwari river are some of its major attractions.

But there is no good road communication to the place, which also has problems of accommodation.

Although the road from Dhaka to Mymensingh is fine, the condition of the road from Shyamganj to Birishiri has not been developed yet. The road from Netrokona city to Birishiri, through Mohanganj, is also in a very delicate condition.

Entrepreneurs do not feel confident to build an eco-resort at Birishiri because of these shortcomings. Birishiri eco-resort entrepreneur Mohammad Kamruzzaman Palash told The Independent, “The awful state of road communications is the prime barrier to the development of the tourism industry in Birishiri. Despite the huge scope of tourism in this region, we cannot make it work. This is very disappointing.”

Bichanakandi is another attractive tourist spot, which is also unable to realise its full potential because of poor communication. Tourists cannot reach the spot by car. They have to park their vehicles at Dhopagul Bazar, near the Osmani Airport, and take CNG auto-rickshaws to reach the place because the road conditions are bad. The state of the Sylhet-Companyganj-Bholaganj and Sylhet-Tamabil road from Sylhet city is also not good.

Civil aviation and tourism minister Rashed Khan Menon told The Independent that it was possible to make the tourism industry flourish.

The government was working continuously to improve the country’s infrastructure, he said.

He, however, added that satisfactory progress had been made, though changes could not be expected to happen overnight.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the direct contribution of the tourism industry to the country’s GDP was 2.1 per cent in 2012. It is expected to reach 4.1 per cent by 2020. By 2012, the Bangladesh tourism industry had employed 2.7 million people. Of this, about 1.3 million were directly linked to the industry.

According to WTTC data, in 2015, the direct contribution of the tourism sector to the GDP was 2.4 per cent or Tk. 407.6 billion, and its direct-indirect total contribution was Tk. 809.6 billion or 4.7 per cent to GDP, which was 4.1 per cent in 2014.

 

 

Poor connectivity hampers tourism growth

Poor connectivity is hindering the growth of the countrys tourism industry. Though this problem has been a matter of long-standing discussions, no headway has been made yet in finding a solution. The Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, however, has kept up its efforts. Akhtaruzzaman Khan Kabir, chairman of the corporation, said: We are working with the local government to develop infrastructure like roads so that tourists can smoothly reach their destinations. Researchers, however, said apart from infrastructure facilities, it was also necessary to make utilities such as water and healthcare available to tourists. The tourism ministry has discussed the issue with other ministries, but no headway has been made yet. The National Tourism Policy, which was revised in 2010, emphasises the importance of inter-ministerial co-ordination to facilitate the implementation of projects meant to link tourist spots. Dr Syed Rashidul Hasan, a teacher at the Tourism and Hospitality Management department of Dhaka University, told The Independent that at least 15 to 17 ministries were directly or indirectly related to the development activities aimed at improving the connectivity of tourist spots. It was difficult for the tourism ministry to bring them together, he said, and felt the Prime Ministers initiative was needed to ensure coordination among the various ministries for the sake of the growth of the tourism industry. If a tourism development committee, led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is formed, the industry will develop rapidly, Hasan opined. Tourism experts feel 17 ministries needed to work together to lend greater connectivity to the tourist spots and attract foreign tourists. The foreign, home, finance, road transport and bridges, forest and environment, and health ministries should coordinate among themselves to provide enhanced connectivity, security, and attraction to the places of tourist interest. In the absence of such cooperation, the development of the tourism industry was bound to face hurdles, they added. Insiders of the tourism industry say because of the dearth of proper infrastructural facilities, Birishiri in Netrokona district is seldom visited by outsiders. Birishiri has the only China Matir Pahar (hill of China clay) in the country. The region also has a tribal research institute. Ruins of the Tong Movement, Hajong Palli and the Someshwari river are some of its major attractions. But there is no good road communication to the place, which also has problems of accommodation. Although the road from Dhaka to Mymensingh is fine, the condition of the road from Shyamganj to Birishiri has not been developed yet. The road from Netrokona city to Birishiri, through Mohanganj, is also in a very delicate condition. Entrepreneurs do not feel confident to build an eco-resort at Birishiri because of these shortcomings. Birishiri eco-resort entrepreneur Mohammad Kamruzzaman Palash told The Independent, The awful state of road communications is the prime barrier to the development of the tourism industry in Birishiri. Despite the huge scope of tourism in this region, we cannot make it work. This is very disappointing. Bichanakandi is another attractive tourist spot, which is also unable to realise its full potential because of poor communication. Tourists cannot reach the spot by car. They have to park their vehicles at Dhopagul Bazar, near the Osmani Airport, and take CNG auto-rickshaws to reach the place because the road conditions are bad. The state of the Sylhet-Companyganj-Bholaganj and Sylhet-Tamabil road from Sylhet city is also not good. Civil aviation and tourism minister Rashed Khan Menon told The Independent that it was possible to make the tourism industry flourish. The government was working continuously to improve the countrys infrastructure, he said. He, however, added that satisfactory progress had been made, though changes could not be expected to happen overnight. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the direct contribution of the tourism industry to the countrys GDP was 2.1 per cent in 2012. It is expected to reach 4.1 per cent by 2020. By 2012, the Bangladesh tourism industry had employed 2.7 million people. Of this, about 1.3 million were directly linked to the industry. According to WTTC data, in 2015, the direct contribution of the tourism sector to the GDP was 2.4 per cent or Tk. 407.6 billion, and its direct-indirect total contribution was Tk. 809.6 billion or 4.7 per cent to GDP, which was 4.1 per cent in 2014.