Action plan for
Sustainable Tourism Development
The tourism industry of
Bangladesh has immense potential. The development of this industry is going to be noticed even
though it is slow. This progress of the tourism industry is due to the continuous
progress of the last few years due to infrastructural development, use of
information technology, development of security system, political and social
stability. Following this, in the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report
of the 2019 World Economic Forum (WEF), Bangladesh is ranked 120th. In 2019, Bangladesh's position has advanced 5 steps, which was
125th in 2016. Although the journey of tourism in Bangladesh started a long
time ago, the light of hope is spreading today after overcoming various adverse
conditions. In this context, the casual work plans of the organizations
associated with tourism are increasing. This Bangladesh of ours
with immense potential can be an ideal tourist city of South Asia, which will
not only move the economic wheel. At the same time, it will present Bangladesh in a positive image
in the world arena. According to the Bangladesh Tourism Police, there are more than
800 tourist destinations in Bangladesh. If these places can be
linked with tourism through proper planning, it will play a huge role in the
economic development of this country. The report ranks 140 countries based on 90
criteria, including security, culture, housing, port and air transport
infrastructure, financial standards and stable travel opportunities. In this, Bangladesh ranks 120th in the world. Despite Bangladesh's slow growth in the tourism sector, the report
highlights the huge potential for tourism in Bangladesh. The number of foreign tourists in Bangladesh is expected to
increase rapidly due to its natural resources and cultural heritage. As a result, there is a sign of significant improvement in the
tourism industry of this country. Bangladesh's tourism sector has seen the most
improvement in the security sector, with Bangladesh's position rising from 123
to 105. In the past, security issues have been considered a major
challenge for Bangladesh. The importance of tourism has increased at the policy-making
level of the government. At the policy-making stage, Bangladesh's position has improved by
two steps compared to previous years and has come to 109. Besides, the brand image of Bangladesh's tourism has increased
all over the world, which has come down from 97 to 8. According to the report, Bangladesh has also moved from 117th to
111th in the preparation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Marketing and product price competition from 69th to 75th. Land and port infrastructure ranks 84th to 70th and environmental
protection 117th. It is said that Bangladesh is one of the countries that has
improved its travel and tourism potential the most. In any case, in order to
carry out developmental activities, important information can be used in
decision making to ensure sustainable development prospects. Therefore, it can undoubtedly play a significant role in bringing
prosperity to the welfare of the people by exposing and preserving useful information
in decision making through increasing research activities. Despite its immense potential and natural beauty, we have not
been able to transform the tourism sector in the 49 years of great
independence. However, in recent years, many non-governmental organizations,
including the government, have sought to transform tourism into an economically
viable sector. Therefore, in order to increase the research activities in the
development of the tourism industry, various institutions at the private level,
including the system of providing higher education on tourism in the government
universities of the country, are constantly being approved. The role of various
schemes of the past decade in the development of the tourism sector in
Bangladesh. In particular, the tourist police has played a big role in
strengthening the security system in the country. Tourist police is
playing a role in security in every important place of the country. With the vision of a beautiful and diverse environment of
Bangladesh, which is safe and secure for tourists, the tourist police has
provided security for the country's sights and tourism related facilities; It is also providing necessary security during the journey of
tourists from airports, railway stations, bus-launch terminals. This specialized unit of the police is carrying out various
activities to create a conducive environment for entertainment by setting up
front desks and help desks at various places for the development of the tourism
industry. Adding tourism industry to Bangladesh's development journey will not
only bring financial success. At the same time, it will spread its benefits at the marginal
level through the participation of the locals. The tourism industry
can become one of the tools for Bangladesh to achieve the Sustainable
Development Goals by 2030. For this, it is necessary to give utmost importance to the
tourism industry in the development thinking of the government.
Md. Farhat Uddin Sojib
Session: 2017-18
Department of Banking & Insurance
