Steps to woo Arab, Far-East tourists urged

Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) Managing Director Salman Javed has termed "Destination Pakistan-2007" as a milestone for Pakistan tourism industry saying that success of this programme would contribute to the socio-economic uplift of the country.
"We will make all-out efforts to attract tourists. The programme could be made viable only by providing all possible facilities to the tourists", he said while addressing the oath-taking ceremony of newly-elected PTDC Employees Union (CBA), held here at a local hotel on Saturday.
Salman Javed said that for the development of tourism, Corporation would have to reserve some specific places for foreign tourists where local people should not be allowed to enter.
"The PTDC had been running in loss for the last four years but due to good financial management, last year it showed reasonable profit. Now, we are laying emphasis on streamlining affairs of all the hotels, motels and rest houses that are being operated by the Corporation", said Salman Javed.
He said the Corporation has evolved a strategy to attract tourists towards Pakistan and for this purpose several conferences, seminars and festivals would be organised this year.
Recently, he said the 'Gandhara Week' was celebrated so successfully that the participating Buddhist monks had promised to visit Pakistan every year along with their companions.
He said that tourism had been given a new dimension by introducing religious tourism. Pakistan has rich cultural heritage, Buddhist, Hindu, and Sikh holy sites, beautiful deserts and lofty mountains could be a source of attraction for foreign tourists, he added.
The Corporation is striving for promoting tourism, therefore, the people and the government should jointly project softer image of the country to prove that Pakistan is the safest destination, he said.
Salman Javed said that tourists from Europe and USA visit Pakistan every year, but steps should also be taken to attract tourists from Arab and Far East Asia. An effective collaboration among public and private sectors is vital for tourism development, he said.