NEPAL: Fall in tourist numbers causing concern
KATHMANDU, 6 July (IRIN) - The nine year insurgency in
Nepal has had a
serious impact on the tourism industry which the government is doing
little to tackle according to sources within the business. They blame
falling tourist numbers on the conflict that has cost at least 11, 000
lives.
"We can no longer say that this is our largest industry
anymore, " said Rabi Poudel from the
Nepal Association of Tour and Travel
Agents (NATTA).
An estimated 30 percent of Nepalis depend on tourism for their
livelihood. The main source is the trekkers who come to see and climb some of
the world's most spectacular peaks.
Tourism remains one of the major contributors towards the national
economy and a key earner of foreign currency. A number of other sectors
such as agriculture, handicrafts and numerous cottage industries have
prospered because of tourism.
Visitor numbers peaked in 1999, with 496, 000 people visiting the
Himalayan kingdom after aggressive government promotion the previous year.
Now travel agents complain there has been no similar international
campaign to raise awareness of the country's tourist potential since that
time.
By 2001, the number of tourists fell to 300, 000 and by 2004, only
around 288, 356 arrived, according to the government body, the
Nepal Tourism
Board (NTB).
An intensification of the Maoist insurgency and the declaration of a
state of emergency by King Gyanandera in January 2005 have done nothing
to entice visitors back and numbers are expected to be down again this
year. Some big hotels and travel agencies in the capital
Kathmandu, the
arrival point for the majority of foreign visitors, have closed down as
have a number of tourist concerns in rural areas.
Some hoteliers are trying to find alternatives to tourism to stay
afloat. One of
Kathmandu's best hotels, the Narayani, has diversified and
added a complex including a department store and wedding party venue.
"If we are to sustain our tourism industry, we need at least
700, 000 tourist arrivals in one year. If we are to develop the industry,
then we need 1.5 million tourists, " said Poudel.
Several tourism experts explained that the conflict ought no longer to
be an excuse for the government to shy away from promoting and
investing in this lucrative sector.
Nepal remains largely safe for visitors. To date, not a single foreign
tourist has come under attack or been killed by the rebels. There have
been incidents of extortion when tourists have been asked to pay a
"tax" when entering or leaving rebel-controlled areas but few
tourists have complained about the practice.
"It's not a good thing to pay the rebels but a few dollars is not
a big deal anyway, " said Israeli tourist Sally Bromberg. She had
just returned from a one month trip with friends in the
Annapurnaconservation area, one of
Nepal's most beautiful and popular trekking
regions, to the northwest of
Kathmandu.
"
Nepal is still safe for tourists. Tourism has nothing to do with
politics, " explained Bromberg.
Tourism in regions like
Annapurna has helped alleviate poverty and
boost the impoverished local economy. Many local people feel they are more
likely to benefit from eco-tourism initiatives now increasingly seen as
a positive development strategy in
Nepal.
The
Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) has brought together
nearly seven ethnic groups to manage a series of environmentally friendly
tourism programmes from which they benefit.
The schemes include local home-stays (guests staying in their homes)
employing locals as guides and interpreters and encouraging tourists to
shop locally whilst respecting the environment.
Some of these gains have been eroded when
Nepal has received negative
publicity.
"What really worries me is not the direct impact of the conflict
but its indirect impact, like the foreign media, who portray
Nepal as
very unsafe for tourists, " said NTB's spokesperson Aditya Baral.
Over-cautious travel warnings from embassies to their nationals have
worked against the industry say the tour operators.
"We understand the responsibility of the embassies are for the
safety of their nationals but it's time they softened their messages,
because no tourist has ever come under any Maoist threat, " said Baral.
Those working in the business have called for infrastructural
development to facilitate growth in the tourism industry, including new roads
and a wider range of accommodation, both of which would enhance
employment opportunities in rural areas.
"If this industry develops, most of
Nepal's sectors will prosper.
Once it fails, crisis will prevail at both rural and urban levels,
leading to more poverty, " explained Shiba Adhikari Tourist Guide
Association of
Nepal (TURGAN).
Many local people, both young and old, have found opportunities in
their villages to work as tourist guides. A lack of education has not
prevented them from being able to secure an income both for themselves and
their families through the industry but now they find themselves at
risk.
Jomsomis a popular mountain tourist area 200 km northwest of
Kathmandu,
that lies at an altitude of 2, 800 m above sea level. Nearly 800
trekkers used to travel through here during the peak season of March and April
but this year there were barely 100 tourists in the same period. The
region is not known as a Maoist "hotspot" but local people
blame the lack of visitors to their valley on scaremongering about the
extent of the conflict.
"The situation is getting desperate for us as we have not been
able to find tourists to work with. I need to find a new job quick, "
said Rabi Lama, a
Jomsom tourist guide.
[ENDS]
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