Expanding horizons

Ministry of Tourism convenes roundtable interaction with Heads of Missions in precursor to first Global Tourism Investors’ Summit, to be organized from 17-19 May 2023.

India has become a prime destination for tourism and is now gearing up for investment to further boost its growth in the sector. The Union Ministry of Tourism (MoT) is celebrating Visit India 2023, highlighting the diverse experiences that India has to offer. The government, taking a mission mode approach to promote tourism and attract private sector investments, will organize the first Global Tourism Investors’ Summit from 17–19 May 2023. The summit will provide a platform for collaboration between the public and private sectors, leading to increased investments in the sector. In a precursor to the summit, the MoT recently organized a roundtable interaction with Heads of Missions, which was chaired by G Kishan Reddy, Union Minister for Tourism, Culture and DoNER. Addressing the meet, Reddy said that guided by the Prime Minister’s vision, tourism development in the country is being undertaken by the government in a mission mode. “Our Prime Minister has stated that India is entering a robust phase of tourism and has been gaining global attention in recent years. Our aim is to make the most of the opportunities available and promote tourism through a mission mode approach that involves active participation from state governments, as well as the convergence of government programmes and public private partnerships. This Summit will significantly aid us in achieving these goals,” he said.

The Minister said that after a significant growth in tourist arrivals, which jumped to 6.9 million in 2022 after two years of negative growth, India is working hard to achieve a resilient growth in the sector. He added that the first Global Tourism Investors’ Summit is aligned with India’s new national tourism policy, which is designed to improve the competitiveness of the tourism sector and attract private sector investments. “International investors will be able to explore India’s tourism and hospitality sectors at the Summit, which will also facilitate collaboration between the public and private sectors to promote growth in the country’s tourism industry,” he said.

He also stated that the current investment landscape of the country makes it an appropriate destination for investment in various subsectors of the Indian tourism industry such as hospitality & lodging, wellness tourism, adventure tourism, eco-tourism, rural tourism and others. The Minister thanked all the participating Missions for attending the roundtable interaction and invited them to actively participate in the forthcoming Investors Summit and be a part of India’s growth and development in the tourism sector.

HYDERABAD WORKSHOP

Earlier, the MoT, aiming to develop sustainable and responsible tourism in the country, organized the third regional workshop on Development of Sustainable and Responsible Tourist Destinations in Hyderabad. Senior government officials and tourism industry stakeholders from the States/ Union Territory of the Southern region namely Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Telangana took part in the workshop. The event started with an inaugural speech by Mohamed Farouk, Regional Director, India Tourism, Bengaluru, who highlighted the need to target the tourism sector growth while keeping in mind the limitation of resources and protecting the ecosystem.

Alok Sharma, Director, Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management, said that the aim behind the regional workshop was to give shape to the concept of sustainable tourism.

Representatives from tourism departments of various states and UTs made presentations and highlighted their best sustainable tourism practices. They talked about the positive economic, environmental, social and cultural impacts of their interventions such as getting Blue Flag Certifications to many beaches and economic growth.

G Kishan Reddy said first Global Tourism Investors’ Summit is aligned with India’s new national tourism policy