Nepal ranked 102nd in travel, tourism competitiveness

KATHMANDU, July 21:

Nepal climbed 10 spots to be ranked 102nd in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) 2015 published by World Economic Forum.

The index analyzes the performance of 141 economies and explores how the travel and tourism sector has responded to economic, security and health shocks over recent decades. "Understanding the nature and extent of the sector's resilience to shocks is important, as a strong travel and tourism sector is critical for job creation, economic growth and development in advanced and developing economies alike," World Economic Forum (WEF) said in its report.

Published every two years, the report ranks economies on the basis of 14 parameters -- business environment, safety and security, health and hygiene, human resources and labor market, ICT readiness, prioritization of travel and tourism, international openness, price competitiveness, environment sustainability, air transport infrastructure, ground and port infrastructure, tourist service infrastructure, natural and cultural Resources, and business travel.

Spain leads the travel and tourism competitiveness ranking in 2015 followed by France and Germany. The report shows Nepal is competitive in terms of pricing as the country is ranked in the 23rd position in price competitiveness. Nepal was ranked 25th in natural resources and 59th in prioritization of travel and tourism. It, however, fared poorly on three parameters -- environment sustainability (133rd), ICT readiness (126th), and cultural resources and business travel (123rd).

As per the report, Nepal has poor ranking for cultural resources and business travel. The ranking is based on different criteria like number of UNESCO World Heritage sites, large stadiums, and number of international association meetings taking place in a country, among others.

Nepal is ranked at 113th position in terms of safety and security, meaning the country needs to do more to create safe and secure environment for foreign tourists.

The report suggests that Nepal needs to improve air connectivity as it stands in the 106th position in air transport infrastructure. Similarly, it needs to make transportation efficient and accessible to key business centers and tourist attractions as it stands at 119th position in ground and port infrastructure, and ensure sufficient quality accommodation, resorts and entertainment facilities as it is ranked in 118th position in tourist service infrastructure.

According to the report, major trend in travel and tourism is shifting demographics. "The number of over-60s in the world is projected to rise from 900 million in 2010 to almost 1.4 billion by 2030. Elder travelers tend to require higher standards of quality and sophistication, to have somewhat larger budgets and this demographic accounts for 40 percent of travel but 60 percent of wealth," the report stated.

Source: Republica