Daily Times

Managing Director Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) Rana Aftab said on Monday that the government was making strategy to revive tourism after disastrous floods in the country.

However, at the moment, the government is assessing the damages to the tourist points, historical sites, natural landscape and private hotels due to the disastrous floods in the country, he said adding that the government along with UNESCO, World Bank, provincial tourism departments is exploring ways to recover revive tourism after floods. He said, tourism industry from the points of view of economic development, employment generation and to bringing people from the world, closer to each other is of paramount importance in the world.

He said PTDC is preparing a comprehensive report would be presented to the Prime Minster, on the issues and bottlenecks being faced by the tourism industry. Tourism in the world is the biggest employment generator from the economic point of view, the MD said adding that the direct economy of tourism has volume of 1.5 trillion US dollars which is a big a amount, the countries earn from tourism.

He said Pakistan’s domestic market of tourism is very strong and the country has immense sources to promote tourism.

He said approximately six million tourist visit different countries every year which helps generating economy of billions of rupees especially in the areas where there is no industries. Tourism also plays a role of a bridge between people of different nationalities, ethnicity and backgrounds through which harmony is promoted, he said and added, the hospitality of the people of Pakistan makes the country unique in the world which is acknowledged by the foreign tourists.