In addition to corridors linking Central Asia’s economic hubs, corridors for tourists will appear in member countries of the CAREC Program.
This issue was considered today during the discussion dedicated to the problems of sustainable development tourism in the CAREC (Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation) within the frameworks of the 52nd Annual Meeting of the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Governors in Nadi, Fiji.
Speaking in the discussion, Mr. Werner Liepach, ADB Director General for Central and West Asia, in particular, noted that the CAREC Program member countries must take joint efforts to develop regional tourism.
Representatives of the CAREC Program member countries informed about effort taken by their governments to promote development of tourism.
Tajikistan was represented at the discussion by Sharaf Sheralizoda, Head of Secretariat of the Consultative Council on Investment Climate Improvement under the President of Tajikistan.
According to him, development of tourism is one of priorities of Tajik government’s economic policy.
Sheralizoda also noted that more than 1 million foreign tourists visited Tajikistan last year, which was 2.5 times more than in 2017.
Meanwhile, Dr. Ishrat Husain, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Pakistan on Institutional Reforms and Austerity, noted that tourist should be given an opportunity to travel to the CAREC countries without bureaucratic delays.
The CAREC region is rich in cultural and historical sites that could be combined into common tourism programs. “For example, it could be possible to create combined tourist tours from Pakistan to Bukhara and Samarqand through other countries of the region,” Dir. Husain said.
The CAREC Program is a partnership of 11 countries—Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—supported by development partners, working together to promote development through cooperation, leading to accelerated growth and poverty reduction.
Meanwhile, the Promoting Regional Tourism Cooperation under CAREC 2030: A Scoping Study, which was prepared at the request of the CAREC Program member nations, seeks to assess the potential of the CAREC Program as a platform to promote a regional approach to tourism development.
It suggests this could be done through the identification of opportunities for enhancing and expanding cooperation among member countries in the tourism sector and by maximizing economic opportunities while safeguarding ecosystems. Promoting cooperation in the tourism sector is one of the operational priorities under the CAREC 2030 Strategy. Tourism is also recognized as an effective way of helping developing countries take part in the global economy and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
