Pakistan projects its north as a success story. The claim to fame is primarily based on the burgeoning number of tourists every year. What nobody points out aloud is that growth is outpacing governance faster than expected. The 18th Constitutional Amendment had devolved tourism to provinces, each with its own legal framework, including regulation. However, the loopholes which the policy makers are better qualified to identify and implementors and executioners can incisively plug still remain unplugged. That is why a sealed hotel keeps taking in guests, the forests keep vanishing for decades before anyone even notices, and mafias keep encroaching on the reclaimed land. All of this comes as no surprise. The question arises: is the local population, a major stakeholder, heard or not before making and enforcing a policy? One fine morning, the news breaks that the timber mafia has been raided, encroachments have been bulldozed, and the police have apprehended antisocial elements harassing tourists. Why the reaction and not preemption? This is just a precursor to issues which I would be highlighting in succeeding lines.

Foremost is the governance. After the abolition of the federal tourism ministry in 2011, the federal tourism sector is now governed by two primary national entities: Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC), which functions as the apex federal agency responsible for strategic vision, national tourism promotion, and infrastructure development. Then there is the Department of Tourist Services (DTS): historically the federal regulatory arm under the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC), the DTS is responsible for implementing the Travel Agencies Act, the Hotels and Restaurants Act, and the Tourist Guides Act. While its........

© Daily Times