KATHMANDU, Sep 27 : Nepal’s Deputy Prime Minister Prakash Man Singh on Friday said that the tourism sector can contribute significantly towards the economic development and prosperity of the country.
The 68-year-old Nepali Congress leader, while addressing a programme to celebrate World Tourism Day here, urged the private sector to come forward to significantly increase the contribution made by the tourism sector towards the GDP, which is just 5 per cent at present.
The government is ready to provide full support and cooperation for the development of tourism in the country, Singh, who is also the Minister for Urban Development, said.
He also underlined the need for making Nepal a prime destination of adventure tourism in the world.
The deputy prime minister also assured that the government will soon frame a tourism-friendly policy to help revive the tourism sector, which was suffering due to the Covid pandemic.
“Nepal being a country treasured with natural and cultural diversity has immense potential to promote tourism,” Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Badri Prasad Pandey said.
Pandey assured that the government will do the needful to address the problems of air safety and expansion of Nepal Airlines, the national flag carrier, which are the two main hurdles for the country’s tourism development.
“Nepal believes in peace since ancient times as our eastern philosophy stresses on peace in sky, earth, water and mountains, and this year’s slogan of World Tourism Day, ‘Tourism and Peace’, truly represents the voice of a peace loving country like ours,” he said.
During the programme organised to celebrate the 45th World Tourism Day, Deputy Prime Minister Singh honoured various personalities and organisations who made outstanding contributions to the development and promotion of the tourism industry. (PTI)
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