On 30th July, Former Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan in the capacity of a Minister of State Zulfi Bukhari tweeted great statistics about tourism in Pakistan during Eid Holidays.
He posted a picture with the fact that during the few days of the Eid Holidays, over 2.7 million people visited Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa for the purpose of tourism. This activity led to spending of Rs66.5 billion in the province.
Commenting on this fact Bukhari wrote, “This is how tourism changes the entire trail of economies, 66.5 Billion is great for a single holiday period. Considering the existing landscape, a big chunk of this number goes to small-med businesses.”
He added, “over years its buildup & socio-economic impact would be life-changing.”
Information Department of KP government also tweeted about this fact, calling it a “record” inflow of tourism.
عیدالاضحیٰ کی تعطیلات میں خیبر پختونخوا کے سیاحتی علاقوں میں 27 لاکھ ستر ہزار سیاحوں کی آمد سے ریکارڈ 66 ارب سے زائد کا کاروبار
#KPTourism #KPRisingWithMK #KPUpdates pic.twitter.com/7rqvXxTKF6
— Information Department KP (@infokpgovt) July 28, 2021
It is worth mentioning that the incumbent Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan has been a big advocate of the tourism economy in Pakistan.
Northern Areas better than Switzerland
Prime Minister Imran Khan on 28th June visited Naran and Kaghan valleys in KP to inaugurate multiple projects in the province.
Speaking at an event during his trip PM Khan said that he felt very good as he saw that the area is comparatively greener compared to earlier days. He appreciated commissioner Riaz Khan for his efforts in the area.
He said he was happy about the fact that the bureaucracy of Pakistan supports the government in its aim for a “Clean and Green Pakistan”.
He claimed that his government will leave a Pakistan that is good for the next generations, and they will thank us for it. He said that the earlier generations had been careless regarding the sustainable use of resources.
PM said that tourism will generate money, create employment for the area, and that money would be reinvested into the development of the areas, just like Switzerland.
He compared the Northern areas to Switzerland saying that the country is half the size of the Northern areas, earns $80 billion from tourism, while Pakistan’s total exports are a miserly $25 billion.
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He said this is due to the implementation of environmental laws in the European nation, and that if such implementation were done in Pakistan, the locals of Northern areas would not have to go anywhere else to find employment opportunities.