By Faiza Tehseen Islamabad, Feb 16 (INP-WealthPK): Pakistan – holding an important geopolitical and geostrategic position in South Asia and being a cradle of ancient civilizations and a melting point of religions and cultures – is superabundant in irresistible natural wonders and historical and religious tourist places, which lure crowds of local and foreign tourists every year. This South Asian country of over 220 million people boasts lofty mountain ranges of snow-clad Himalayas, Karakoram and the Hindukush, ancient sites, coniferous forests, lush green meadows, the vast Indus plain, coast line, wetlands and deserts and varied flora and fauna. It is due to these generous gifts of the mother nature that tourists from almost all parts of the world make a beeline for Pakistan throughout the year shoring up the much-needed foreign exchange and accounting for approximately 6 to 7% of the GDP. In 2016, tourism fetched $790 million down 13.66% from the previous year, $865 million in 2017 with an increase of 9.49% from 2016, $845 million in 2018 down 2.31% compared with 2017, $948 million in 2019 with an increase of 12.19% from the previous year and an all-time high of $1,127 million during the year (2021). The following is the chart showing tourism revenue growth till December 2019. Source: https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/pakistan/tourism-revenue-growth Pakistan’s vast tourism potential gives it a special standing in the eyes of different international forums. The World Economic Forum (WEF) has placed it among the top 25 percent of global destinations for its UNESCO world heritage sites. The British Backpacker Society (BBS) declared Pakistan as the world’s third best potential adventure destination for 2020 and the year before, it declared that Pakistan topped the list of world’s best travel destinations and termed it one of the friendliest countries on earth. According to a survey by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) in 2020, the tourism industry created around two million jobs. The government expects this sector to contribute Rs1 trillion ($6.2 billion) to economy by 2025. A report released by the Gallup Pakistan – a research organisation – cultural tourism in Pakistan has seen a massive increase of 317 percent over the past five years with Punjab contributing nearly 95 percent. According to the Gallup, cultural tourism has experienced a massive increase since 2014. From approximately 1.6 million visits in 2014, the tourist traffic at cultural sites rose to 6.6m visits in 2018 – a 317 per cent increase in a span of five years. Punjab, as the largest and most populated province, contributed approximately 95pc whereas tourist traffic in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fluctuated over the years. Tourist traffic at the museum sites increased by approximately 50pc with the number of visits increasing from 1.7m in 2014 to around 2.7m in 2018. Tourist traffic at the KP and Balochistan museum sites also experienced a similar trend whereas in Punjab and Sindh, the number of visits to museum sites fluctuated over the years. But overall, the provinces recorded maximum number of visits in 2018. According to the Gallup, total visits by foreigners increased by more than two folds for both cultural and museum sites in Pakistan. Over the past five years, the percentage of foreign visitors to museums rose by approximately 130pc whereas foreign visitors to cultural sites rose by 100pc. Museums remained more popular among foreign visitors by receiving on average 50pc more visits than cultural sites. The trend among all the four provinces for total foreign visits saw a gradual increase, with the highest increase in KP where the number of museum visits in 2018 rose by 250pc. The Pakistan Monument Museum in Islamabad, Khewra Mines Museum in Chakwal and Lok Virsa Heritage Museum in Islamabad were the top three most popular museums from 2016 to 2018, with Taxila and Lahore museums in fourth and fifth positions. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic seriously dented the tourism sector in 2020 with visits by foreign tourists declining considerably. During this serious business slump, local tourism somehow or the other propped up the industry. Managing Director Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) Aftab-ur-Rehman Rana told Xinhua in an interview that the total contribution of travel and tourism to Pakistan's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 was 5.7 percent. He said in 2020 when the COVID-19 hit the world, the total contribution to Pakistan’s GDP decreased to 4.4 percent, cutting down a large number of employments. Talking to Xinhua, spokesperson for Culture, Sports, Tourism, Archaeology and Youth Affairs Department of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province Latif-ur-Rehman said the tourism industry suffered in 2020, as most of the tourist places were closed due to coronavirus-induced fears and restrictions. According to him, COVID-19 inflicted over Rs10 billion losses on the tourism industry of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The current federal government has prioritized the tourism industry and has been taking special measures to showcase the stunning natural scenery and rich cultural heritages of the country. The government plans to develop 20 new tourist destinations in its five-year term at an average of four each year. It has also announced visa-on-arrival policy under which nationals of 50 countries will be issued visas on arrival in Pakistan, while nationals of 175 more countries will be able to apply for e-visas. The other major measures taken by the federal and provincial governments in this regard are as follows.

• On September 17 this year, Pakistan and China signed an MoU for promotion of two-way tourism in Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) countries.
• A train service was launched on July 3 this year for tourists in Quetta.
• On June 19 this year, the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) resumed Air Safari flight after 14 years.
• On May 30, 2021, the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) decided to formulate the National Tourism Strategy 2021-30.
• On April 14, the Kalash Valley tourists were allowed to stay in camping pods for Rs3,000.
• On March 28, 2021, the Punjab government constituted a new tourism & heritage authority. The Punjab launched a tourism app on September 27, 2020 to facilitate travellers.
• Punjab govt will develop new tourist destinations.
• Tanda Dam is being developed into a tourist resort.
• The historic Attock Fort will be opened for tourists.
• Seven projects are underway for promotion of tourism in the coastal areas of Balochistan.
• Pir Sohawa resort in Islamabad will be developed into a tourist
• Kaghan will be made all-weather tourist destination.
• In July last year, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government decided to launch the world's longest and highest cable car project.
• In July las year, the KP government floated bids to attract international, religious tourism to Gandhara Strip.
• In June last year, the KP government identified 14 new sites to be developed into tourist destinations.