Tourism development

Those familiar with the bureaucratic culture prevailing in Dhaka might re-assert that the public sector cannot handle the tourism industry, without heavy support from the private sector (the tourism department is a dumping ground for unwanted officials, as mentioned in the press report).

But the private sector needs heavy monitoring for laying the foundation of the regulatory role, which has not yet matured even after five decades. The present infrastructure is ripe for development projects to attract the tourists on a long-term basis. That is the technical and professional side.

The cultural and social conditions are none too bright at the moment, with corruption, lawlessness, indiscipline, cheating, and terrorism holding sway thanks to the negative political culture. The politicians have to be deeply interested in tourism, as they govern the country. The hidden godfathers have to be controlled and weakened. It is not a hard task if there is political consensus at the national level. There is no continuity in the long-term projects with change of regime.

Security arrangements for tourists in lonely and isolated areas is not enough to instil confidence even in the local tourists. The mind must be free to enjoy holidays, at home or abroad. The social conditions for travelling foreigners must be improved. It will take time, as it is a very broad spectrum for completion of the various projects dealing with human interaction.

Meanwhile, this time interval (a couple of years) may be utilised for laying fast the basic foundation for the erection of an integrated tourism infrastructure, of facilities and trained human resources. It is not a new industry, hence prototypes would be available easily, to tailor to local conditions. Building up the service sector would not be a problem, considering the density of our population.

One small snag: our politics is not stable!