The Decline In Tourism Of Pakistan

The title of this research paper, as it entails, is Decline in Tourism of Pakistan. The main purpose of this project is to determine the real causes of downfall in Pakistan’s Tourism. In order to further elaborate the purpose, the objectives of study are to obtain the rating and ranking of various issues which are considered to be the likely causes of decline in tourism; examine and investigate the role of Government of Pakistan (Ministry of Tourism, PTDC, TDCP) in running the tourism industry; determining how far the public sector of Pakistan is responsible for the downfall of tourism and determining how far the private sector of Pakistan has its role to play in the decline of tourism. Multiple sources were used to collect secondary data such as periodicals, government sources, regional publications, media sources and commercial sources. A hybrid research methodology is used which consists of questionnaire survey research, a personal interview and a focus group interview. Through the multi-dimensional research, it was observed that out of the ten issues which posed as likely causes for tourism downfall, nine proved to be real causes which are constantly decaying the tourism industry of Pakistan. Except the terrorism factor, which acts as both an internal and external force, all issues are consequences of government’s incompetence and corruption. Nevertheless, the Pakistani media, being a key stakeholder is not helping to portray the soft image of Pakistan to the world and within. In order for curbing these issues, the it is primarily the responsibility of Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab(TDCP), Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation(PTDC) and all provincial tourism ministries’ to foster infrastructural development related to tourist services and facilities; establish cohesion and coordination amongst state departments in order to smoothly carry out tourism development projects. Public-Private Sector partnership is the need of the hour and if the government sincerely works on establishing productive partnerships with private sector enterprise then it will be an all-win situation not only for the tourism industry but for the economy of Pakistan as a whole. The Media of Pakistan should emphasize more on the national interest and curb the continuous and over-emphasized broadcasting of news related to disasters, violence and terrorist attacks as it results in portrayal of negative image of the country in the world. As for terrorism, since now it has become more deep rooted in Pakistani society, the current government and the governments to come would have to be equipped with a package – considering the national interest- of radical social, economic and educational reforms which should be planned and implemented in order to stop the development of provocative and extreme mindsets in the society which further lead to conflicts in the name of religion, castes and socio-economic classes.

This research project brings a deteriorating industry of Pakistan into limelight which is continuously underperforming for the past 5 years. Pakistan is a home of approximately 180 million people and most of the population is earning less than US$ 1 per day (Fakhar, 2008). Pakistan just like any other beautiful European country is a big market for tourism because it offers not only beauty of nature but also variety and diversity in cultures (Fakhar, 2008). In fact tourism is the most profitable and entrepreneurial business (Fakhar, 2008), especially for people living in the mountain areas as it creates new job opportunities and reduces the unemployment level for them (Fakhar, 2008). But unfortunately, tourists’ visit to Pakistan is decreasing tremendously with ups and downs each year (Fakhar, A.H, 2008). [1] 

Therefore the title of my research project is ‘Decline in tourism of Pakistan’.

BACKGROUND

Pakistan, after its independence from British India appeared as a modern nation on 14 august 1947(Fakhar, 2008). All four provinces of Pakistan are gifted with heritage and culture and one of the fertile and unique collection of majestic and lush fields, rivers, rugged mountains, lakes, deserts, landscapes and seashores enriched with friendly and hospitable people thus making it a heavenly destination for tourists with different tastes (Fakhar, 2008). Pakistan is known in the world of tourism because of the Karakoram, mountainous regions of the north, the Great Himalaya and the Hindukush who form the densest concentration of one of the world’s highest peaks. Pakistan’s Kalam (Swat valley) is known as the Switzerland of Asia (Fakhar, 2008).The hunza and chitral valleys in pakistan were the home to a small Pre-Islamic animist Kalasha community who claim descent from the army of Alexander the Great (Fakhar, 2008). The historical and archaeological sites of the Gandhara and Indus Valley civilizations, Taxila, the Mughal Empire and Mohenjo-Daro are the examples of oldest civilizations in Pakistan (Fakhar, 2008). This multicultural nature of the country also contributes to the tourism industry in the way that it offers various traditions, customs and festivals for the tourists to explore and enjoy (Fakhar, 2008). [2] Tourism in Pakistan has been stated by the Lonely Planet magazine as being the tourism industry’s “next big thing” (Wikipedia, 2012). Pakistan’s tourism industry was in its heyday during the 1970s when the country received unprecedented amounts of foreign tourists, thanks to the Hippie Trail (Wikipedia, 2012). The main destinations of choice for these tourists were the Khyber Pass, Swat, Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Lahore and Karachi (Wikipedia, 2012). In 2009, The World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report ranked Pakistan as one of the top 25% tourist destinations for its World Heritage sites ranging from mangroves in the South, to Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa of the 5,000-year-old cities of the Indus Valley Civilization (Wikipedia, 2012).

One year after the 2005 Kashmir earthquake i.e. October 2006, British Newspaper The Guardian released a piece of information what it described as “The top five tourist sites in Pakistan” in order to help the country’s tourism industry (Wikipedia, 2012). The five sites included Lahore, Taxila, Karimabad, The Karakoram Highway, and Lake Saiful Muluk. In order to promote Pakistan’s unique and various cultural heritage, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz launched the “Visit Pakistan” marketing campaign in 2007 (Wikipedia, 2012). This campaign involved various events throughout the year including fairs and religious festivals, regional sporting events, various arts and craft shows, folk festivals and several openings of historical museums (Wikipedia, 2012). [3] 

Based on the above Information, It seems like Pakistan is a perfect place to be visited by the tourists but still the tourists’ arrival is decreasing day by day(Fakhar, 2008) especially if the timeframe from 2007 to 2011 is considered.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Various international and national think tanks, renowned authors and scholars have highlighted the main causes of decline in tourism of Pakistan over the years. Seemingly, some of these causes are so grave and deep rooted in nature that it might take the Government of Pakistan decades to eliminate them provided it carry out the process of elimination with utmost dedication, coordination among other departments, effectiveness and efficiency. Due to adverse publicity in negative travel advisories, continued terrorism international media and deteriorated state of law and order in the country, the prospects for revival of inbound foreign tourism are very poor in near future. But still the scope for growth in domestic tourism does exist [4] . Lack of coordination among different government bodies, poor infrastructure, less attention paid on improving the image of the country by national campaigns are just some of the reasons for the decline of the sector in the present years. Terrorism and lack of security has also caused a severe blow to Pakistan’s tourism industry and can be listed as the major reason for its poor performance. [5] According to the tourists the biggest problem they are facing while travelling is security issues which include the current insurgency in Pakistan (Fakhar, 2008). Even the domestic tourists don’t feel like travelling in their own country. Furthermore, the negative image of Pakistan portrayed by media to the outside world (Fakhar, 2008). Lack of infrastructure; ineffective promotional policies; inadequate tourist’s services and facilities; lack of initiative by concerned government departments; inadequate knowledge and training of personnel in tourism sector; law and order situation especially in the high tourist attraction areas; inadequate infrastructure facilities; lack of incentives in the tourist sector; failure to show and project the positive image of the country via media to the outside world; low allocation of annual tourist budget; lack of development and facilities in the mountain regions; lack of understanding to the tourist needs; the overtaking and change of governments and administration within the country(army rule); high inflation rate are the key points which have altogether made tourism an unsuccessful industry in Pakistan (Fakhar, 2008) [6] . There was 0.8 percent and 3 percent decline in the number of foreign and domestic tourists, respectively (Correspondent, 2012, March 27). Official data revealed that the Taxila Museum was visted by 2,434 foreign tourists with various other archeological sites especially Sirkap and Dharmarajika Stupa located in the valley as compared to 2010 when it was recorded 2,474(Correspondent, 2012, March 27). 87,173 domestic tourists visited the sites last year as compared to 92,660 in 2010 (Correspondent, 2012, March 27). [7] 

How far terrorism affected tourism?

The way terrorism, whether international or national, undoubtedly eroded the economy of Pakistan has also plagued the tourism of the country with the same gravity and notoriousness. The countries or regions that depend heavily on tourism have been found to suffer significant economic losses due to the persistence of terrorism (Ali, 2011). Gilgit-Baltistan and the NWFP are important destinations in Pakistan and people living there depend on tourism (Ali, 2011). For example, Swat was an important tourist destination in Pakistan which attracted people from across the world not only to its natural beauty but also to see its rich civilization and history. Swat supports all sorts of tourism, i.e., spiritual tourism, culture/heritage tourism, eco-tourism, adventure tourism, sports and commercial tourism [8] . There are over 855 hotels, which include 405 restaurants, in the valley and around 40,000 people are directly and indirectly associated with these hotels (Ali, 2011). But they have mostly remained closed during the past three years due to militancy and the subsequent military operation (Ali, 2011). According to government’s own estimates, the hotel industry in Swat valley suffered a loss of Rs. 60 billion from 2007 to 2009 (Ali, 2011). The workers associated with the hotel industry also lost their jobs due to the ongoing incidents of terrorism. Moreover, the transport industry faced a severe blow and both the national and international transport services either closed down or decreased their services from Peshawar, Islamabad and Lahore (Ali, 2011). Therefore, the hotel association offered a very cheap package of 10-day free stay in hotels in the valley Swat starting with the New Year 2010 (Ali, 2011). Consequently, in the financial year 2008-2009, the overall real GDP growth fell to 2 percent [9] (Ali, 2011). Pakistan ranked 113 out of 130 countries in 2009 as a tourist destination. The low ranking attributes to incidents of terrorism and the lack of a tourism regulatory framework in Pakistan (Ali, 2011). Sources said that many motels in the country’s restive northwest were closed down as tourists were banned from those areas and the staff had migrated to other cities for work [10] (Ali, 2011).According to Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2011 [11] , Out of 139 countries, Pakistan has further dropped to the 125 mark as a tourist destination.

The Role of Ministry Of Tourism, PTDC, TDCP and other Tourism Development Organisations of Pakistan

Government intervention may be necessary to enhance the contribution of tourism to socio-economic development and poverty reduction. Of all governments’ principal roles, one is to set policy and legislative frameworks for tourism. The reasons why governments should formulate tourism development strategy are firstly the tourist industry has many negative externalities, particularly negative environmental and social impacts that need to be regulated and managed at national or local levels. Secondly, tourism can offer substantial opportunities for local economic development, which can augment the positive effects of tourism on local socio-economic development and poverty reduction. the Planning Commission of India has already identified tourism as one of the major vehicles for generating employment and promoting sustainable livelihoods (UNESCAP, 2007, pp. 84-85). [12] A 2007 UNESCAP report highlighted the importance and functioning of public sector in the development of a country’s tourism. As tourism moves up the national agenda, the departments of government dealing with tourism may need to be upgraded and strengthened. To achieve sustainable management of tourism, tourism ministry staff needs networking, support of colleagues and coordination and in other ministries and in a range of sub national administrations. Such needs emerge because the administration and governance of tourism takes places in localities where tourists and host communities interact, while incentives and regulations aare applied within a framework laid down at the national level. The tourism ministries have to be watchful to the impact of institutional fragmentation on the governance of tourism. Major decisions about management of cultural and natural assets, planning, labour regulations, environmental impact assessments, taxation policy and financial incentives are often the responsibility of other ministries, where there might not be adequate awareness about the impact on tourism plans and policies. The functions of tourism ministries should go beyond marketing and promotion, regulating tourism businesses and include wider consultation and coordination. For example, the air transport has changed considerably in recent years due in part to policy initiatives, such as adding a substantial number of new routes, deregulation of air services and allowing operations by low-cost carriers; all of which would aim to increase the number of tourists. Since the economic benefits of tourism are now explicitly evaluated in aviation policy in countries such as Singapore, tourism ministries have to consider the implications for tourism plans, strategies and policies. Tourism ministries can provide the government and its agencies with systematic and a good quality data, particularly about the effects of different types of tourism on local socio-economic development. The provision of such data can help to substantiate the contribution of tourism and convince policy makers (UNESCAP, 2007, p. 85). [13] In 2010, the Punjab Resource Management Program with collaboration of A.F Ferguson & Co. prepared a recommendations report to reform the TDCP (Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab). The above mentioned consultant firm aided in developing tourism models for various developed and developing countries including Thailand, India, Malaysia, USA, Switzerland and Australia. In all the cases, it was concluded that the public sector of any country is the main driving force for the tourism industry. As mentioned in this report, the functions and duties of Ministry of Tourism were as follows:

Development & Promotion of Tourism in Pakistan.

Establishment of Pakistan National Tourism Council.

Establishment and publicity of tourists centers in Pakistan and abroad.

Development of tourism information centers for the service and guidance of domestic and foreign tourists in Pakistan.

Establishment of tourist facilities in tourist potential areas where private sector is reluctant to invest.

Regulation and Control of tourist industries and associated service.

Establishment of International organizations and agreements relating to tourism.

Controlling Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation.

Promoting Facilitation of travel in Pakistan for tourists.

Development of Tourism and Hotel training institutes.

Encouraging training and research in tourism in Pakistan and abroad. [14] (A.F Ferguson & Co. 2010)

However the Ministry has been abolished on June 30th,2011 after the 18th amendment in the Constitution of Pakistan ensuring transfer of tourism ministries to the provinces. A.F Ferguson & Co. recognized the importance of TDCP in running the tourism industry of Pakistan. The consultants proposed the following roles and functions of TDCP which the organization should adopt:

Encouraging the tourism activities and industry in the province

Performing the planning and development of tourism sites

Offering one window service to facilitate the tourists

Offering assistance to the Tourism and Resort Development Department

Facilitating the organization and promotion of tourism events and activities

Creating an environment which ensures capacity building in tourism industry

Encouraging and facilitating public-private partnerships. [15] (A.F Ferguson & Co. 2010)

As per an analysis of tourism management of Pakistan, the stated objectives of PTDC are as follows:

To establish and develop tourism infrastructure on an all Pakistan basis

To act as an instrument on behalf of the Federal Government for the production of tourist literature and publicity for tourism both in terms of domestic and international.

To act as a catalyst to encourage the private sector to play an active role in tourism development.

To undertake tour operations and facilitate ground handling facilities for group tours.

PTDC has an administrative structure which is responsible to control and operate all its involvement in the tourism sector. These are:

Planning and Development Wing/Engineering Department; undertakes identification and implementation of projects concerned with tourism infrastructure such as recreation units, motels, resorts etc.

Publicity and Promotion/Marketing Department; undertakes the production and publication of tourist literature in foreign and domestic tourist markets.

PTDC Motels Ltd; carry out the management of all hospitality units operated by PTDC in various tourist destinations in Pakistan.

Pakistan Tours Ltd; facilitates ground handling and transport facilities for international and domestic tourist groups and also acts as an inbound tour operator. [16] (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009)

The provincial governments of other provinces have not adequately realized the importance of tourism for which the federal government is partially responsible. As far as only the realization is concerned, after assessing the performance of TDCP and realizing the fact that most of the tourist assets are situated in jurisdiction of NWFP or Khyber Pakhtunkhwaa(KPK), The provincial government of KPK established Sarhad Tourism Corporation (STC) in 1991. The aims and objectives of STC are as follows:

To motivate the private sector to step forward and support tourism development in the form of tour operations and accommodation facilities at potentially attractive regions;

Provide long-term, leases to private sector for development of properties through

Joint ventures with STC;

Serve as a spring board for fruitful interaction between the private sector and Government, PTDC for proper development of tourism industry;

Cooperate with private sector in developing, distributing and sale of quality information and publicity materials. [17] (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009)

The 2007 UNESCAP report also suggested ways how governments can channelize the progress of tourism of a country. Real progress can be facilitated by using a wide range of instruments. Many of these have been identified by the World Tourism Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme and are categorized into measurement instruments which include sustainability indicators and monitoring; identification of limits, command and control instruments which include legislation, regulation, rules and licensing; land use planning and development control, voluntary instruments (guidelines and codes of conduct, reporting and auditing, and voluntary certification), supporting instruments (infrastructure provision and management, capacity-building, and marketing and information services) and economic instruments (pricing, charges and taxation; property rights and trading; financial incentives; and voluntary contributions). The right mix of policies and instruments will vary depending on the situation, objectives and government structures (UNESCAP, 2007, p.84). [18] 

The analysis on tourism management sheds light on the fact that over the years, the Ministry of Tourism remained unsuccessful in gaining the respect or confidence of the private sector. Nevertheless, the ministry was not fully empowered to handle the problems faced by tourists since most of the related responsibilities were assigned to other ministries/divisions, hence the focus on the problem solving lacked altogether. Furthermore, lack of funding had serious implications (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009) regarding the effective management of the tourism sector (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009). The Ministry of tourism never proved itself to be a source of effective and meaningful data, hence no comprehensive survey on tourism on its credit (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009). As far as PTDC is concerned, serious problems relating to recruitment, training, management style and finances are prevalent. The ministry is not fully responsible for recruiting the personnel. All the staff is not hired directly by the ministry

Therefore a problem of dual management persists as half of the employees (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009) hired by the ministry are generalists whereas half of them hired directly by PTDC acquire inadequate experience. As a result, internal cooperation and coordination lacks among departments hence reporting procedure is also affected. The personnel hired, either by PTDC or Ministry of Tourism are not well trained and sufficiently qualified. Ironically over the years a major chunk of funding received from government (Baloch, 2007) has been spent in administration and staff costs. However, considering the training of personnel in the tourism industry, the Government of Pakistan back in December 1960 established a training institute which was initially a cooking school known as Pakistan Institute of Tourism & Hotel Management (PITHM). A 2009 HEC Analysis stated “the main function and activity of the Institute is to impart knowledge by training manpower for the Travel and Tourism Industry and Hospitality in Pakistan. This is done by seminars, workshops, regular courses and on the job training etc. It cooperates with PIA’s training center in Karachi and provides courses for the Pakistan Navy. Furthermore, it offers consultancy services when and where required” (Pakistan Research Repository, 2009). [19] The analysis also remarked on the condition and the performance of this institution:

“Since its foundation the Institute has been located in rented buildings, which could not cater for the demands of a professional education institute. Hence this has been a major constraint on its effectiveness and its ability to train students to the standards indicated in its aims and objectives. Lately the institute has moved to a newly ill-constructed building lacking numerous important facilities and equipment and has yet to resolve many problems to enable it to provide better training and facilities and environment for students and staff.

For the last decade, the institution has had no official Director and the current Acting Director has inadequate management or training skills and is not compatible with the requirements of the hospitality industry. The existing staff is de-motivated and unqualified as instructors are entrenched in outdated syllabuses and teaching methods. Resultantly, the image of the school throughout the industry is very negative, chiefly due to lack of knowledge as to the industry needs and what the school can provide.

The incapability of the school is further compounded by government controls and establishment employment scales where it is not possible to attract national or international qualified trainers at suitable private sector levels. [20] “(Pakistan Research Repository, 2009)

In June 2011, The National Assembly of Pakistan passed the 18th amendment according to which the Ministry of Tourism was devolved into the provinces. In response to this development UNESCO published a report to examine the post-devolution situation in the culture and tourism sector of Pakistan. According to the findings of this report, a number of stakeholders remarked that culture policies are an instrument for the promotion of creativity and must therefore recognize and incorporate heritage, tradition, crafts, classical and the performing arts. The majority of stakeholders both from the public and private sector supported devolution as they felt it would give empowerment to the provincial identities and pride and ownership at grass root level, which was the main purpose of the 18th amendment. The other side of the coin reflects the critical point of view on devolutionary process attributed to the 18th amendment. The stakeholders who hold the particular point of view also include those in the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism and Culture. Critiques of the devolutionary process, including those in the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism and Culture, as well as those emerging from stakeholder consultations pointed out that the provinces will not be able to harmonize a cohesive cultural heritage; instead this will lead to its fragmentation, and increase divisiveness within the country. Similarly some senior government representatives in Islamabad also did not support devolution, pointing out that the provinces lack capacity, resources and funds to completely manage cultural departments. Devolution was feared to not cause inter-provincial disharmony, but make communication with key donors more difficult, and cause delays in securing technical assistance. It was thus argued that the Ministry of Culture should remain the focal point and coordinate with the provinces. [21] 

The Role of Private Sector

The tourism sector investments in the country are dominated by private sector with the role of public sector mainly as a facilitator. Nearly the entire restaurant, hotel, travel agency and tour operator business is in the private sector. Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) is also operating a limited number of hotels and roadside facilities in areas where the private sector has been reluctant. The Department of Tourist Services (DTS) is responsible for maintaining the standard and categorization of hotel industry. A 2012 report by Planning Commission of Pakistan remarked on the tourism development of Pakistan. The Ministry of Tourism looks after the entire public sector interventions including formulation of policies and overseeing the legal and regulatory framework. [22] The hotel and transport business is in the hands of the private sector, which has not contributed much to meeting the development costs. However the Planning Commission of Pakistan has envisaged to strengthen and regulate the private sector institutions operating in the hotel management and training sector in the 2011-2014 MTDF (Medium Term Development Framework) period. The hotel management and training institutes in the country are not delivering the desired results due to lack of management, regulation and teaching staff. Similarly, the host of private sector institutions providing ticketing and travel courses are not regulated which results in variable standards in the sector. As against the annual training needs of the tourism industry of about 3000 skilled staff, the total output of the existing training institutes is only about 500. (Planning Commission, 2012)

The Hotel Industry of Pakistan

Ali, et al., (2012) highlighted the importance of hospitality industry in South Asia and the current state of hospitality industry in Pakistan:

The Hotel industry is among the top three constituents of the world economy after oil and autos and is growing faster than the petroleum and arms. It’s larger than agriculture in the U.S.A, automobile industry in Japan and banking in Switzerland. Developing economies of South Asia are in rapid transit towards becoming service economies and therefore competitiveness of hospitality industry is emerging as a crucial factor influencing the overall competitiveness of a country, and Pakistan is no exception to this, where the share of services is increasing. It is unfortunate that instead of growing with international trend, the hospitality industry in Pakistan, co