July 16, 2015: PATA NEPAL has organized the press meeting highlighting the programme endorsed by the Educative committee on 15th July in wellness organic club, lazimpat kathmandu in the presence of Mr. Hari Man LamaHon. Secretary of PATA Nepal Chapter, Suman pandey, CEO of Fishtail Air and chairman of PATA, other executive members of PATA and different media journalists.
The 2nd Executive Committee Meeting of PATA Nepal Chapter was held for the discussions of the programme for the fiscal year 2015-16 with plans for the implementation of the same were tabled and endorsed by the team of PATA Nepal Secretariat. As One of the country’s major foreign exchange earning sector, tourism industry has hit hard by the April 25th devastating earthquake so the country is expected to lose at least 40 percent tourists this year as a result of the earthquake. Luring tourists back may be an uphill battle.
Despite the overall estimated damage and losses, the tourism industry remains resilient and optimistic about executing a turnaround in the medium to the long term. The sector is poised to Build Back Better with concerted efforts from all the stakeholders and support from the government.
In this connection, PATA Nepal Chapter has taken a number of initiatives on tourism marketing and promotion front to revive the industry. Highlights of the programme endorsed by the Executive Committee are: Himalayan Travel Mart 2016.
Himalayan Travel Mart is a Business to Business (B-2-B) event where buyers with interest in Nepal and the Himalayan region shall attend from all over the world. Sellers will comprise of agents selling the Himalaya SAARC region and similar destinations anywhere in the world. Since the government of Nepal is observing May 29 as International Mt Everest Day, which is the day Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa reached the 8,848-meter summit of Everest in 1953, becoming the first people to stand atop the world’s highest mountain.
So, looking at the importance of this day, Himalayan Travel Mart is being organized to mark the Everest Day on May 29, 2016. PATA Nepal Chapter shall play an active role in organizing the Himalaya Mart with the support of PATA International in cooperation with Nepal Tourism Board, Government of Nepal, Tourism Organizations and other interested organizations.
PATA Nepal Chapter has actively participated in the Tourism Recovery Campaigns right after the 25/04 crisis that hit the country. PATA Nepal Chapter with PATA International has handed over the PATA Nepal Tourism Rapid Recovery Task Force to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation for further implementation.
Further to this, PATA Nepal Chapter will be organizing FAM Trip which will be organize in order to support Nepal Tourism Recovery Campaign, PATA Nepal Chapter will be coordinating a FAM Trip of Tour Operators from various source markets and International Media.
The new initiation is Bloggers Conference, where PATA Nepal Chapter will be organized a ‘Bloggers Conference’ to promote the Tourism Recovery Campaign in Nepal. This is aimed to give a firsthand instant update on locations and experiences of the Bloggers during their visit to Nepal.
Moreover, the third is Human Capital Development which will focus on conducting workshops with Prof Kaye Chon, Dean – Hotel & Tourism Management of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Mr. Damian Cook, CEO of E- Tourism Frontiers has been finalized. PATA Nepal Chapter will be starting its first PATA Nepal Chapter- Summer School of Hotel Management in September 2015, in coordination with NATHM.
Members of the PATA Nepal Executive Committee include representatives from the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Nepal Tourism Board, Nepal Airlines Corporation and the private sector all will be giving their best effort to make this event successful.
– Sangeeta Tiwari
