Kathmandu, June 2: Rural Tourism Workshop at South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) level kicked off in the Capital today.
Organised jointly by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation and the SAARC Secretariat, the workshop aims at exchanging experiences made by each SAARC member country in promoting rural tourism and consolidating mutual relations between the member countries.
Meanwhile, inaugurating the meeting, Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Ananda Prasad Pokharel said that the key basis for the promotion of rural tourism is homestay facility offered in rural villages of the region.
“And it will play a crucial role not only in increasing economic activities of Nepal but also the whole region. Rural tourism is a key instrument in increasing mutual relations between people within the region and expanding bilateral and multilateral financial support,” he said.
He also said that there are a lot of sources of rural tourism in the region as it has enough potentiality of cultural, religious heritage and ancient sites.
Noting that the government has declared to observe Visit Year, 2016 throughout the year for sustainable tourism development, he said that there would be a help with the economic development in the region through carbon-free tourism.
Also on the occasion, Director at the SAARC Secretariat Rita Dhital said that the workshop would give a platform to help promote tourism in the region through the exchange of the experiences of the region in this sector.
Likewise, secretary of Tourism Ministry Prem Kumar Rai said that cultural and ancient heritage of Nepal is an attractive destination for tourists from around the world.
The workshop was attended by two representatives of each from SAARC countries including Nepal, India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Working papers on the efforts made by respective SAARC countries for the promotion of rural tourism were also presented in the event.
