Travel and Tourism Report for Pakistan 2015
Unfortunately rankings of Pakistan in case of Tourism are low.
Pillar 1. Business Environment Rank 87
Pillar 2. Safety and Security Rank 138
Pillar 3. Health and Hygiene Rank 102
Pillar 4. Human Resource and Labour Market Rank 138
Pillar 5. Prioritization of Travel & Tourism Rank 120
Pillar 6. International Openness Rank 114
Pillar 7. ICT Readiness Rank 121
Pillar 8. Price Competitiveness Rank 9
Pillar 9. Environmental Sustainability Rank 141
Pillar 10. Air Transport Infrastructure Rank 105
Pillar 11. Ground and Port Infrastructure Rank 78
Pillar 12. Tourist Service Infrastructure Rank 125
Pillar 13. Natural Resources. Rank 112
Pillar 14. Cultural Resources and Business Travel Rank 60.
http://www3.weforum.org/docs/TT15/WEF_Global_Travel&Tourism_Report_2015.pdf
Improving Tourism in Pakistan:
1. Step up Marketing and Promotion of Tourism in Pakistan
In spite of being blessed with very valuable tourist attractions, Pakistan has not been successful in developing itself into a popular tourist destination in the world. The inability to take a structured approach for marketing and promotion has resulted in failure in the art of presentation of our tourism to the world. There have been very insignificant activities carried out in this regard on local and/or international media. During the past six decades, Pakistan has not been successful in developing a brand of its Tourism attractions. Pakistan has very rich natural, historic, archaeological, cultural assets; which can very easily and quickly create a brand for Pakistan Tourism.
Pakistan is ranked 125 in Travel and Tourism Index.
http://reports.weforum.org/travel-a...l-tourism-competitiveness-index-ranking-2015/
Pakistan should be in Top 50 considering the rich cultural heritage, archaeology as well as adventure in Northern areas that Pakistan offers.
2. A proper standard of Certification and its enforcement is required.
Pakistan ranked 131 on the travel and tourism regulatory framework.
From a legal perspective, the acts are defined in Constitution.
1. The Pakistan Hotels and Restaurants Act 1976
2. The Pakistan Tourist Guides Act 1976
3. The Travel Agencies Act 1976
But there is no implementation practically.
a. A Star System for standardising the quality of services offered by hotels is required but implementation is absent..
b. There is also a weak implementation of standards and certifications for tourist guides.
c. In transportation, there is no implementation of standards. There is no fitness certification system implemented for vehicles hired by the tourists. There is no standardisation of transportation rates between different destinations.
d. The issue of lack of standards and certifications also applies to tour operation businesses.
3. A lack of Participation by Pakistan Tourism officials in International Tourism Festivals and Fairs.
4. An improvement in Image for Tourism is required for Pakistan.
The law and order issues do exist in some areas of Pakistan; however, the reality is much better than the perception in the local and international media. Its not just the media which needs to play a positive role to highlight Pakistan as a travel destination but also the fact the mostly travel advisory reports are developed by the diplomats who rely only on the media and have no exposure to ground realities. This negative image becomes a strong barrier for the international tourists to travel to Pakistan and also discourages the domestic tourists for travelling.
565,212 tourists visited Pakistan in 2013
http://tribune.com.pk/story/767886/number-of-foreign-tourists-in-2014-dips-by-50/
5634 in 2015. Modi also visited
http://arynews.tv/en/5634-tourists-ister-tells-na/.
5. A dire need to freshen up the deteriorated infrastructure of Tourism
Due to a recent history of natural disasters, the Tourism Sector in many areas especially mountainous regions has suffered major losses, including physical damages to buildings and equipment and lost businesses. This in turn has taken its toll on availability of tourist facilities in the Country. Damage caused to access roads, unreliable supply of electricity, poor sanitation at tourist spots, and lack of proper solid waste management has worsened the situation. Lack of development of new tourist sites is particularly relevant for domestic tourism since they are interested in going to new places. There is no proper planning for the development of tourist places. Unplanned development in and around tourist sites is damaging the natural environment.
6 The presence of Military and Para Military security forces does not project the best image.
This is directly related to the security situation in Pakistan. Its important to note that many foreign tourists do not even witness their own armed forces on daily basis in their country. With paramilitary security forces deployed on roads and near Landmarks in towns and in suburbs of tourism locations, tourists feel threatened and hesitate to visit tourist sites.Tourists find these sites under threat.
In some areas, there is the practice of providing a security escort to the foreign tourists; even without their consent. This practice threatens and discourages the tourists.
7. Tourism Courses for Tourism Workforce Development are needed.
There is serious lack of an integrated approach for ensuring the supply of qualified human resource (managers and workers) for the Tourism Sector of Pakistan. There are no degree courses on tourism and hotel management offered by Top universities of the country. A few private colleges and universities offer B.A. and M.A. level courses but their overall standard is very low. Pakistan Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management at Karachi and College of Tourism and Hotel Management at Lahore offer short courses in hospitality and travel management but short courses are unable to match international quality standards.
8. Proper use of Information Technology services for Tourism Promotion is required.
PTDC, TDCP, TCKP and other Provincial tourism promotion organizations, through their websites, have ensured their presence on the internet but none of these websites meet the needs of tourists. There are no facilities for getting online information on room availability or for online bookings of hotels, transport facilities, tourist guides, etc.
There is a need to provide a complete one-stop solution for the tourists.
