Nepal Investment Summit – 2017 organized jointly by Government of Nepal and Nepal Investment Board concluded on March 2. The Summit was inaugurated by Rt. Hon’ble Prime Minister and graced by leaders from many of the friendly countries. Hon’ble Finance Minister of India Mr. Arun Jaitley was also present on the occasion.
Travel trade experts have said that the target set by the government to attract 2.5 million tourists annually by the year 2025 is attainable and it will also open the tourism industry as an avenue for investment. Speaking at a session titled ‘Tourism: Inspiring Sustainable Development’, they said that the strategic plan to bring 2.5 million tourists from the below 1 million mark at present would create substantial space for investors. The success of the tourism vision of the government will significantly depend on stable and secure circumstances and in a time of uncertainty, this must be guaranteed, they opined. “This continuing development of Nepal implies a growing demand that can keep up with the significant large-scale investment in new tourism infrastructure and facilities.” The tourism sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP has been projected to jump to 9.29 percent from 2.44 percent in 2015.
Tourism entrepreneur Rabindra Raj Pandey, speaking on behalf of the private sector tourism industry said that Nepal has the advantage of being a country in between two emerging global powers and also the world’s fastest growing economies — India and China. “We don’t have to go very far to bring tourists. We just need to concentrate on these two markets, which together account for one-third of the total world population.
NATTA President Mr. Madhusudan Acharya also participated in several workshop groups.