Aview of the validation meeting on Validation Meeting on ‘Trade Services Tourists’ attitude towards Bangladesh Tourism’
Speakers at a roundtable have recommended for taking initiatives to turn foreign business visitors into tourists offering short tour packages matching with their busy schedules in Bangladesh.
"Every fourth foreign visitor here was a business visitor (25 percent) in last five years and it was 30 percent in 2013," said Shoaib Akhtar, Research Associate of Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute (BFTI) while presenting a paper at the roundtable discussion.
He said good numbers of foreign nationals are working in Bangladesh, 20,000 are only in RMG sector, who usually don't visit Bangladesh tourist- spots during their holidays.
Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute (BFTI) and Tourism and Hospitality Management Department of Daffodil
University jointly organized the round table on "Trade in Services: Tourists' attitude towards Bangladesh Tourism" at the BFTI auditorium at Karwan bazar on Wednesday in the city.
Akhtar said the BFTI and Daffodil University will conduct a survey jointly among 370 business visitors in Bangladesh to get an idea what kind of tour packages will attract them.
"We will give a special emphasis on decision making criteria for choosing a destination, preference of destination, types of trip, time and duration, reason, companions and financial aspects," he said.
The researcher said the study will cover some additional areas such as tourist's attitude towards visiting neighboring countries and flow from those countries.
"The result of study will give us a guideline to motivate foreign business visitors and job holders towards local tourism," he said.
Chairman of Tourism and Hospitality Management Department of Dhaka
University Professor Dr Mujibudin Ahmed said there is no nightlife for foreign tourists in Bangladesh.
"I am not telling that we have to set up disco, casino or nightclub, but traditional cultural show can be arranged by the government or hotel authorities every evening in Cox's bazar and other tourists spots to keep the foreign tourists busy," he said.
Mentioning high business potentiality of Bangladesh tourism industry, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BFTD Ali Ahmed urged for conducting proper promotion at home and abroad for attracting more tourists.
Daffodil University's Allied Health Science Dean Professor Dr Ahmed Ismail Mostofa and Chairman of Tourism and Hospitality Management Department Mahbub Parvez and Chairman of Tourism and Hospitality Department of IBAIS University Professor M Ahsanullah took part at the discussion, among others.
