Comment by Riaz Haq on October 10, 2017 at 9:08pm

Avari group launches hotel in Multan

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/235983-Avari-group-launches-hotel-...

China would not let anyone dismember Pakistan or harm its territory because it was investing $ 46 billion in it for its survival, a leading businessman said on Tuesday. 

“China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would be a game changer for Pakistan which would bring prosperity, development and employment for thousands of people,” Byram Dinshawji Avari, chairman Avari Group of Companies told a press conference after the inauguration of Avari Xpress Boutique in Multan. 

“I prefer to invest Pakistan and that’s why I am launching hotels of world-class in Multan, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Islamabad, and other cities. All Pakistanis should invest in Pakistan and they should not look to other countries.” 

Avari said he did not agree with those economists who were expressing their reservations on Chinese investment. “China would neither prove to be an East India Company nor capture our country,” he said. 

He added that Gwadar port would help boost international trade with China and central Asian states.  “When a motorway can help boost country's economy, business, and 
prosperity, then why China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a major project of Rs4600 billion will not prove to be a game-changer,” Avari asserted. 

He said that investors should come forward to raise the graph of Pakistan in economy.  Speaking on the occasion, the former Punajb minister Jalaluddin Roomi hoped that trade and economic activities would increase with the establishment of hotels of international repute in Multan. “A special economic zone should be developed in Multan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project,” Roomi demanded.

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 18, 2017 at 10:51am

TRAVEL & TOURISM
ECONOMIC IMPACT 2017
PAKISTAN

World Travel and Tourism Council WTTC

The direct contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP was PKR793.0bn (USD7.6bn), 2.7% of total
The total contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP was PKR2,033.5bn (USD19.4bn), 6.9% of GDP in 2016, and is
forecast to rise by 6.0% in 2017, and to rise by 5.8% pa to PKR3,793.0bn (USD36.1bn), 7.2% of GDP in 2027.
In 2016 Travel & Tourism directly supported 1,337,500 jobs (2.3% of total employment). This is expected to rise
by 2.3% in 2017 and rise by 2.5% pa to 1,757,000 jobs (2.3% of total employment) in 2027.
In 2016, the total contribution of Travel & Tourism to employment, including jobs indirectly supported by
Visitor exports generated PKR93.8bn (USD893.8mn), 3.6% of total exports in 2016. This is
Travel & Tourism investment in 2016 was PKR375.2bn, 9.3% of total investment (USD3.6bn). It should rise by
8.1% in 2017, and rise by 8.0% pa over the next ten years to PKR872.0bn (USD8.3bn) in 2027, 11.4% of total. 

https://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic-impact-research...

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 28, 2017 at 4:49pm

This is all the more painful when there’s so much promise. Here, I would like to draw attention towards our failed tourism: an industry where we had so much potential to tap but it’s all a dream gone sour. Tourism industry has been awfully neglected since inception. The United Nations 70th General Assembly has designated 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development because tourism has boundless economic promise with it forecasted to contribute a massive US$ 11 Trillion to World GDP (11.4% of GDP). Even locally, the industry could make as much as Rs. 1 Trillion (US$ 10 Billion) by 2025, even with current infrastructure – and this is only a fraction of actual potential of our land that is so often termed as Switzerland of the East and a colloquial heaven on Earth.

Pakistan has so much to offer in terms of adventure, sports, spiritual, heritage and eco-tourism but the only things wrong with the industry are lack of infrastructure and a very frightening security landscape that haunt locals and expats alike. If we were to put these things right, the tourism industry could very well be our economy’s liberator; creating jobs, narrowing balance of payments as well as boosting our sluggish GDP growth but guess what: ride North and the indifference of government will be so absolutely evident.

Take an excursion to the captivating Saif-ul-Mulook and you will re-discover the meanings of un-metalled road. In fact, there is no road to the lake although this is probably the most frequently visited lake in the country – the approach up the hill is one where the jeep plod on rocks and stones with not even a centimeter-deep mud, gravel or metal to support the tyres. The journey to this Northern haven is an agonizing one.

Unfortunately, the story does not end there, the lake is gradually becoming full of junk and trash; not just because tourists are to blame but mainly because you would find no bins there and then, there’s another catch if you still want to like the place; there are no washrooms there: all I could find was a tent wherein the smell was so much more repugnant than an inflated bladder.

And the woes continue; the place is only open till dusk after which, if you are to believe the locals, you could be quizzed and even detained by police for staying late or camping there. It is almost a crime to sit down there across the lake to witness the reflections of a moon-lit night. And of-course, there is no electricity, access to telephone or cellular signals, a police post or a PTDC desk; there is not even an information-board there – it is all complete wilderness!

Add to it the fact that the nearest hospital from the lake is 100 kilometers or over 3 hours away, all the way down to Balakot. This, coupled with the dismal security situation, which is compounded by absence of any security posts at major tourist destinations (except for one in central Naran) can make the trip, a scary one, if things were to go awry.

And this is not ranting: when you fail to bring infrastructure in the 21st century to a place as celebrated and as captivating as the Saif-ul-Mulook, you lose a plethora of would-be international tourists who would be raring to witness these spectacular sights and the sites beyond this; as this lake also acts as a base-camp for tracks to breathtaking Aansoo Lake and mystical Malka-e-Parbat.

Times have changed. No one tours a place any longer because it’s famed to be a home to fairies or other exaggerations like the lake’s depth being unmeasurable or the adjoining peak being unsurmounted to date; something that the locals insist but nothing can be farther from the truth. All the local breadwinners (drivers, cooks and shopkeepers) complained about the lack of infrastructure there and how much even something as little as a two-lane road could better theirs as well as the country’s economy.

http://blogs.dunyanews.tv/18115/pakistans-conundrum-missed-tourism-... 

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 28, 2017 at 4:52pm

India is the world’s 7th largest tourism economy in terms of GDP, says WTTC India’s Travel & Tourism sector ranks 7th in the world in terms of its total contribution to the country’s GDP, shows a new report by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). According to the new data, Travel & Tourism generated INR14.1 trillion (USD208.9 billion) in 2016, which is the world’s 7th largest in terms of absolute size, the sum is equivalent to 9.6% of India’s GDP. Additionally, the sector supported 40.3 million jobs in 2016, which ranks India 2nd in the world in terms of total employment supported by Travel & Tourism. The sector accounts for 9.3% of the country’s total jobs. India’s Travel & Tourism sector was also the fastest growing amongst the G20 countries, growing by 8.5% in 2016. A further 6.7% growth is forecast for 2017. India’s strong Travel & Tourism figures are predominantly generated by domestic travel, which accounts for 88% of the sector’s contribution to GDP in 2016. Visitor exports, money spent by foreign travellers in India, only represents 12% of tourism revenues and in 2016 totalled INR1.5 trillion (USD22.8bn). This is 5.4% of the country’s total exports, compared to a global average of 6.6%. Data from the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) shows that India received only 9 million international arrivals in 2016, placing it 40th in the world, and a tenth of those received by top-ranking France. However, there is a lot of potential for India to grow their visitor exports. Over the past few months India has already starting to address this gap and made significant changes to visa facilitation, which will help to boost international arrivals. WTTC data suggests that visitor exports will grow by 5.4% in 2017.

Read more at: https://www.wttc.org/media-centre/press-releases/press-releases/201...
Copyright @ WTTC 2017

Comment by Riaz Haq on November 6, 2017 at 7:42am

Swiss tourist couple badly injured in youth assault at #Agra #India. #Tourism #TajMahal

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/06/world/asia/taj-mahal-assault-tou...

Youths would later tell the police that the couple, both 24, had offended them by ignoring their greetings and kissing in front of them. Not so, Ms. Droz told The Times of India. They were trying to force her to take selfies with them, Mr. Clerc added. Eventually, they began beating the couple with sticks and rocks.

By the time a crowd had gathered and the youths had run away, he had a fractured skull and possibly permanent hearing damage and she had a fractured left arm. “The blood was flowing,” said Ram Kishor, a police constable in the area.

The assault late last month made headlines for several days in India. It was a fresh setback for tourism in this part of the country, which is home to some of the world’s most famous monuments but finds its status threatened by disputes about its Muslim heritage, amid reports of declining visitor numbers and of harassment of tourists.

Stops at Fatehpur Sikri and in the nearby city of Agra to see the Taj Mahal, all of which are in Uttar Pradesh State, are at the top of many itineraries for tourists in India. Built in the 17th century by the Muslim emperor Shah Jahan as a tomb for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, the Taj Mahal attracts millions of visitors every year. Tour operators call it India’s monument to eternal love.

But Hindu nationalists, some of them aligned with the governing Bharatiya Janata Party, have taken aim at the Taj Mahal and its ties to a Muslim ruler.

During a trip to Agra in June, Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, said at a rally that small replicas of the monument given to foreign dignitaries “did not reflect Indian culture.” Other far-right leaders went further, describing it as having been built by “traitors” who “wanted to wipe out Hindus.”

But Mr. Adityanath seems to be softening his stance, at least in public. When he visited Agra in late October, he called the Taj Mahal a “unique gem.” A tourism brochure published by the state government that initially omitted the Taj Mahal has been updated to include it.

Tour guides said the controversy had hurt their business.

--------


On a recent day, a throng of tourists formed a line at the mouth of the Taj Mahal complex, pressing their bodies forward. Among them was Vital Labonte, 66, a French Canadian visitor in hiking boots, who said the occasional jostle or appeal for money did not bother him.

“The kids run at you, they want money to better their life,” he said. “Just say no. I’m not worried with it.”

Viktoria Simeoni, 23, an Austrian visitor who had booked a trip to India on a whim, said she sometimes felt unsafe when men stared at her or asked for pictures, a request often made to foreign tourists in India.

“One lady gave me her baby,” she said. “I was just holding the baby, and then she took pictures of me. I didn’t feel so comfortable.”

The police found it necessary to crack down. In the days after the attack, they arrested over 50 people they accused of being touts with reputations for hounding tourists.

In Fatehpur Sikri, officials emphasized that the severity of the attack against the Swiss couple was rare. The crime that tourists report most often is theft.

Comment by Riaz Haq on December 21, 2017 at 9:23pm

Aviation Industry in Pakistan shows great potential for growth
Updated about Dec 17, 2017

http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/index.php?page=newsdetail&news_id=...

The Aviation Industry in Pakistan has shown great potential for growth and aviation traffic has been increased over 10 percent in last few years inside the country but Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has been facing financial losses due to bad mismanagement and lack of proper interest by the government.

According to aviation sources, even International Air Transport Association (IATA) which represents major industry airlines across the globe has also recognized the progress in this field and observed that Pakistan is amongst high growth aviation markets.

In the recent years, many airlines have increased in the frequency of operations of their airlines in Pakistan. The airlines from Bahrain, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Turkey, UAE and some other countries are operating to Pakistan and getting enough business.

This increasing trend of foreign airlines has been adding economic growth in Pakistan and also creating job opportunities in the country. The government while considering the growth potential in the aviation industry has taken a number of steps to cater more business from international airlines.

Besides takings measures for creating balance in Pakistani and foreign airlines, the government has liberalized the policy of aviation through initiating confidence building measures for foreign carriers with appropriate expansion and up-gradation of the aviation infrastructure.

A spokesman for aviation department said the government has taken measures to improve the security system for domestic and international airports, radar systems have been improved and measures are under way for further improvement of radar and guidance system for all flights especially in foggy conditions at the airports.

For this purpose instant landing system at Allama Iqbal International Airport Lahore has been upgraded to ensure continuity of flight operatio even in case of bad weather. New International Airport of Islamabad, equipped with most modern and latest facilities, will be operational at the start of next year.

A number of development projects are underway at Peshawar, Gwadar and Quetta for the improvement of the airports in these areas.

On the other and PIA, the national carrier, is facing huge financial losses due to bad management and bureaucratic attitude of the staff and lack of interest being taken by the government.

The business and revenue of the PIA is decreasing but the airline owned by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is making profit. Many routes of PIA are being closed but private airlines are opening new routes and making profit.

The financial loss of PIA in early 2017 was Rs. 45 billion which was 30 percent more as compared to last year losses. Although the PIA has 36 aircrafts and it has been acquiring more aircrafts on dry lease. As the PIA is national carrier, therefore, the government is taking care of its losses and injecting financial assistance from time to time to continue the operation of this airline.

Comment by Riaz Haq on December 30, 2017 at 11:05am

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE > PAKISTAN
Pakistan identified as top travel destination

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1596763/9-pakistan-identified-top-trav...

The British Backpacker Society has identified Pakistan as it’s top travel desitination due to it being “one of the friendliest countries on earth, with mountain scenery that is beyond anyone’s wildest imagination”.

“Pakistan is the clear winner of the British Backpacker Society’s top 20 adventure travel destinations 2018 and we encourage keen travellers to book a trip now” the backpackers, who have explored over 101 countries, shared on social media. Other top destinations included Russia, India, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan and China.

Gulf News has carried the comments of two members of the BBS on Pakistan. Samuel Joynson and Adam Sloper said that Pakistan had a lot to offer travellers.

“Pakistan is one of the friendliest countries on earth. So, prepare to be invited into people’s homes, take more selfies than you can count, and have every preconception that you ever held about this area of the world changed forever,” Samuel said.

The pair visited Pakistan in 2016, and traveled from Lahore to Gilgit-Baltistan via the Kaghan valley. They ended their trip in the Hunza Valley and climbed the Hon Pass near Karimabad.

“We chose to climb the Hon Pass as Eric Shipton, one of Britain’s most famous mountaineers, described the view from the pass as ‘the ultimate manifestation of mountain grandeur’, and we wanted to follow in his footsteps and experience this spectacle,” Samuel recalled. “The view from the Hon Pass was indeed the greatest natural sight that either of us has ever seen, and we would recommend it to anyone with a keen interest in mountaineering.”

Samuel also shared a travel tip: “Head north to the astonishing peaks of the Karakoram along the unforgettable Karakoram Highway. It is beautiful, exciting and culturally interesting, and travellers are rewarded at the journey’s end-point with perhaps the most beautiful natural sight on earth, the Hunza Valley.”

British Backpacker Society is known for inspiring thousands of it’s online followers to visit less famous destinations in developing countries. Adam had a word of advice for international travelers concerned about their safety when visiting Pakistan:

“Our advice would be to put preconceptions on the security situation in Pakistan to one side, and conduct some independent research. You should certainly review travel advisories from respective governments, but also speak to local Pakistanis about the situation. We believe that travel is at its best when it changes a visitor’s preconceptions, and few experiences achieve this more than travelling in Pakistan” he implored.

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 18, 2018 at 10:55am

Malam Jabba: Hub of tourism in Pakistan

https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2018/01/15/malam-jabba-hub-of-tour...

Known for its scenic beauty, Swat is also called the ‘Switzerland of Pakistan’. While the valley has nearly always remained a major tourist attraction, its local economy mainly depends on tourism.

Located about 300 kilometers from Islamabad and 42 km from Saidu Sharif, Malam Jabba is a complete adventure tourist destination, and perhaps the finest skiing resort in Pakistan.

Malam Jabba has two Buddhist stupas and six monasteries that are spread across the resort. The presence of the monuments at such a height clearly indicates that the area was settled over 2000 years ago. Malam Jabba also offers two exciting trekking trails that offer excellent scenery. The Shangla Top is a trek that is about 18 kilometers from the resort.

In the year 2005, the government started losing its control over the valley and later in 2007 it completely fell to non-state actors. While the government was able to reestablish its writ, no one believed that the charm Swat once had for tourists would ever get restored.

But today, with investors pouring money into the valley’s local tourism, it has once again become a major tourist attraction. While the Pearl Continental Hotel, Malam Jaba is starting its operations in July 2018, a major international skiing competition is also being held on Jan 17 at the Malam Jaba resort that has been rebuilt by the Samson’s Company.

It’s pertinent to mention here that militants had burnt down the PTDC motel – built with Australian collaboration, had destroyed the chairlift cable and an office of the meteorological department in Malam Jabba back in 2008.

Yaqoob, the ski resort’s manager told Pakistan Today that more than one-hundred-thousand tourists come to Malam Jaba every month during winters. Owing to it, the local business has improved, he added.

The manager at the resort further said that the event will not only project a better image of the country but will also help restore the faith of the international community in Pakistan being a safe destination for both the investors and tourists.

While the ongoing projects indicate that the valley is on the right track to development, the initiatives should be encouraged and supported by all stakeholders of the board as any controversy regarding any investment would roll back the efforts which the KP government has made till now, and will leave the people of Swat behind as those who will lose the most.

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 18, 2018 at 11:07am

Where to go in 2018: an insiders’ guide

From the Karakoram to the Seychelles, travel industry leaders pick emerging destinations for the coming year

https://www.ft.com/content/8d5b5492-e737-11e7-97e2-916d4fbac0da

For much of the past decade, Pakistan has been synonymous in many people’s minds with terrorism and unrest — the place Osama bin Laden was killed, where Malala Yousafzai was shot, and where climbers preparing to scale an 8,000m peak were murdered in their tents. And yet in the past three years, an improvement in the security situation has prompted the beginnings of an unlikely tourism surge. “While I am sure this will raise some eyebrows, we are starting to see a marked increase in tourism to Pakistan,” says Jonny Bealby of Wild Frontiers. His company took 55 per cent more clients to the country in 2017 compared with the previous year, and advance bookings are more than 100 per cent up on this point 12 months ago. In 2015 the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office relaxed warnings about visiting large areas of the mountainous north; figures from the state-owned Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation suggest total arrivals have tripled since then, to a total of 1.75m in 2017. A publicity drive — including covering London buses with photographs of Pakistani scenes — as well as celebrations in 2017 marking the 70th anniversary of the country’s formation, have helped raise the nation’s profile. Roads have been improved, including the resurfacing of large stretches of the fabled Karakoram Highway, and domestic airline connections increased. “Of course, I realise the country still has a long way to go before it can attract the numbers of adventure tourists that came here pre-9/11, but there is no doubt things are on the up,” says Bealby.

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 28, 2018 at 10:31pm

#Pakistan to have 5 new domestic/international #airlines soon to meet nation's #airtravel boom: Askari Air, Air Siyal, Go Green, Liberty Air and Afeef Zara Airways.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1620663/2-open-skies-policy-five-new-a...

“Air traffic of the country has swelled 40% over the past five years to 20 million passengers,” Standard Chartered Pakistan Chief Executive Officer Shahzad Dada said at the recent launch of the Emirates Standard Chartered Credit Card.

The current rate of growth in Pakistan’s aviation industry is expected to be around 9% per annum which could continue till 2020, according to a forecast of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) – a trade body of world’s airlines.

“These numbers tell us the open skies policy has proved favourable for the country and its people,” remarked Muhammad Afsar Malik, former additional director of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), who was believed to have played a key role in framing the National Aviation Policy 2015.

Most of the upcoming carriers will target low-profit, far-off destinations like Gwadar, Turbat, Panjgur, Khuzdar, Dalbandin, Zhob, Rawalakot, Skardu, Chitral, Gilgit, Bannu, Parachinar and Muzaffarabad.

Of these, Gwadar, Gilgit-Baltistan and Turbat could generate immediate profits because of their tourism potential and work on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects.

For these remote regions, the new carriers will bring airplanes suitable for small airports.

National flag carrier PIA has thus far taken advantage of these routes as it is the only player catering to air travel needs of these areas. PIA, which once helped Emirates airline of the UAE by giving two aircraft with crew, is now beset with financial trouble with losses going beyond Rs300 billion.

According to Malik, Pakistan’s domestic air traffic has grown 10%, which is six percentage points higher than the 4% expansion in international air traffic.

Although Pakistan’s market size is increasing, the share of domestic airlines is contracting. They carried 42% of the passengers in financial year 2016-17 as opposed to the 58% flown by international airlines.

“Airlines are in the race to attract customers through fare reduction; had the market not been free, the air ticket you got for Rs10,000 would have cost around Rs30,000,” said Malik. “Competition is good for public service.”

However, PIA does not seem to be buying the idea.

“Private airlines, especially foreign carriers, have mainly resorted to price cuts, instead of going more towards customer satisfaction in terms of comfort and improved services,” commented PIA spokesperson in an email response to a query.

Separately, a Shaheen Air spokesman said in an email “about every player in the aviation chain including airports, airplane manufacturers, jet engine makers, travel agents and service companies turn in healthy profits. Yet, it is one of the enduring ironies that companies that actually move passengers from one place to another, which are a crucial link in the chain, struggle to achieve break even.”

He suggested that the government should revisit its open skies policy as foreign carriers could enter Pakistan’s market without any restriction. “Authorities should devise a new concept called a fair skies policy whereby local carriers along with foreign ones have a fair share in the market,” he said.

The industry did not oppose market liberalisation, but it should be designed in such a way that industry players were not hurt as they were already operating at a low profit margin of less than 3%, he said. “The industry, including PIA, is producing a combined net loss annually.”

UAE’s Emirates and Etihad Airways as well as Qatar Airways among other Gulf carriers are giving a tough time to Pakistan’s domestic airlines, which believe it is hard to compete with these foreign carriers since they are state-funded or operated.

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