Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Ch. Abdul Ghafoor, the Managing Director, Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC), has said that the government is taking multifarious practical steps for the revival and promotion of tourism in the country.

“Tourism has turned into a profitable industry in the world. But with us it is reeling on the brink of annihilation. The present democratic government under the leadership of Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif is committed to facilitate tourists as the promotion of the tourism industry would not only help to revive the economy but would also remove misperceptions about Pakistan.

He said this while addressing the World Tourism Day 2016 Seminar and Photo Exhibition organised by the PTDC here at Rawalpindi on Tuesday.

He added: “We are working hard to improve the infrastructure and the facilities which will definitely increase the tourist flow to the country”.

He said that the World Tourism Day is celebrated every year on September 27 under the theme declared by the UNWTO. The theme “Tourism for All — Promoting Universal Accessibility” is the most appropriate theme in the present scenario for the very reason that Pakistan and China are in progress to develop the CPEC.

There are no two views on the importance of the sustainable development of the tourism industry as a major source of foreign exchange, a tool of job creation and poverty alleviation and above all as a factor for creating harmony among people from different parts of the country. Its ability to sustain even the poorest in the economic ladder has been proven many times. The corridor can act as a regional institution to boost bilateral relations.

The CPEC is the name of the regional economic integration beyond the geographical route. It represents the domestic institutional arrangements and macro-economic coordination between the two countries (China and Pakistan) in the transnational flow of economic factors such as tourism, technology, information and labour.

The CPEC is not only a road to the economic prosperity of Pakistan it can also be termed as a grand future of the world. It is estimated that about three billion people from China, South Asia and Central Asia, would benefit from the economic corridor, creating one of the largest accessibility solutions of the world.

The improved law and order situation in the country had certainly paved the way for positive changes to come, including a healthy influx of international visitors to Pakistan.