South Asia : Intra-regional is the Need of Our Times

Of late, nearly five decades later, development of intra-regional tourism in South Asia has become a subject of close-mouthed discussion in both public and private sector, yet no tangible action has been initiated to pick up the gauntlet to meet the challenges and exploit the opportunities offered by tourism between the countries of South Asia.

“Your next venture: next door, to discover the neighbouring delights”, remarked S.N. Chib, the first Director General of Tourism of India at an informal get together of tourism professionals in London in 1961. And thus germinated the idea of intra-regional tourism in South Asia. Mr. Chib saw intra-regional tourism as a precursor to the development of international tourism in the sub-continent where the potential was unknown and opportunities remained untapped. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons, Mr. Chib’s dream did not materialize.

At the risk of repeating what may be common knowledge, South Asia with population of 2.04 billion, which is almost a quarter of the world’s population, is home to several major religions, with civilizations dating back to several centuries having ancient shrines and holy towns, varying geographic features, high mountain ranges and golden beaches ,exquisite monuments, and rich cultural heritage. Add to this a variety of folklore, arts and crafts, cuisines, colourful festivals, affordable prices, and very warm and hospitable people, one comes up with a mighty attractive tourism product which has an appeal for a wide cross-section of tourist markets and segments within these markets in the sub-continent. In short, South Asia has something to offer to every age, every pocket and every taste. Though the countries are located close to each other and share common demographic and socio-economic features, no concerted efforts have been made to project South Asia as an integrated and composite tourist destination for tourists from within the region. The result is that the region not only failed to optimise its tourism potential and build a healthy and vibrant image for itself in the markets but also deprived its economies, societies and environment of tourism’s benefits, and promote peace and stability between the countries. No lessons were drawn from successful examples of regional cooperation such as ASEAN, Mekong (MTF), the Caribbean (CTO), South Pacific (SPTO) and the European Union (ETC).

Ever since the evolution of tourism in South Asia, countries adopted a “walk alone” policy, and instead of looking first at intra-regional tourism as a stepping stone for international tourism, straightaway went in for the latter. They did not heed to Ratan Tata’s wisdom for success, “if you want to walk far, walk together”. This “me alone” approach may have benefitted them initially but in the long-term, did not pay much dividends. There has been a general apathy on part of both the public and private sector to promote intra-regional tourism.

Take India, for example: the country recorded a total of 28.2 million outbound departures in 2023 but the share of South Asia was quite meagre – less than a million (Sri Lanka – 302,844, Nepal – 319,936 and the Maldives – 209,198). Conversely, out of 19,245,817 international tourist arrivals in 2023, India received only 117,652 from Sri Lanka, 135,203 from Nepal and 71,707 from the Maldives, a majority of them for medical and educational purposes who confined themselves to a single destination.

A prestigious British tour operator specialising in South Asia recently commented that with India’s outbound expected to achieve a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between 8-11 per cent over next 5-6 years, will it continue to keep South Asia on the backburner? Addressing the South Asian industry, he added “you can love South Asia, you can hate South Asia but you cannot ignore South Asia”.

A quick look at international tourism after the “stolen” years of Covid, clearly indicates that countries are fast moving towards the full recovery phase, and according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), it is expected that international tourism would reach the pre-pandemic level (2019) by the end of 2024. South Asia, with 29.4 million arrivals in 2023 (growth of 29.7 per cent over 2022, largely due to India), is still 13 per cent behind the pre-pandemic level, and in view of the current political instability and fragile socio-economic conditions in some countries, pessimists doubt whether the region would reach the pre-pandemic level by the end of 2024 and keep pace with global tourism.

It is the fear of being left behind coupled with the fact that there is increasing regional cooperation in other sectors, senior professionals in public and private sector have started giving some thought to regional cooperation in tourism. Almost all countries feel that regional tourism is indeed the way forward. A senior official of the Ministry of Tourism of India says “there are so many elements which we share with our neighbours – history, culture, religion, architecture, cuisine, folklore…..there are many grounds for the development of regional tourism as the linkages are very strong”.

A similar view was expressed by a leading outbound tour operator from Sri Lanka, “…in addition to financial benefits, regional cooperation between the public and private sectors of South Asian countries would go a long way in fostering socio-economic development, and maximising the positive impacts of tourism”.

This was supported by a senior manager of the Bangladesh Tourism Board, “……regional cooperation and integration are the need of the hour, and we should focus on short-haul tourism than long-haul”.

The same sentiment was echoed by a Bhutanese official, “…cooperation and collaboration should be the “mantra” for the growth and development of the sector in the region”.

Maldives is in full agreement with this approach, and a veteran resort operator is of the view that “…it is important for us to strengthen the relationship between the travel trades of our neighbouring countries to float attractive and affordable tourist packages. We cannot aspire to grow in isolation”.

With so much convergence of views, what is it that is inhibiting regional cooperation in tourism in South Asia? Lack of political will? Lack of a uniting body or structure to coordinate and govern the regional initiatives? Low profit operations expected by the private sector operators? The outdated approach to remain isolated and continue to “go alone.”? These elements can be the subject of a separate full-scale discussion. Consultations with several major players in the region have suggested that the best course to go forward is for governments to reach a broad consensus on regional cooperation and collaboration, and leave the private sector to lead the initiative. A firm view has emerged that it is the private sector, which operates and manages the sector on a day-to-day basis, should take the reins in its hands and play a leadership role in the development and promotion of tourism in the region.

As to tourism specifics, based on an external and objective analysis, many factors have come to the forefronty as stumbling blocks in further development of tourism in the region, prominent amongst these being: poor air connectivity, though this has improved in the recent years but still not to the desired levels; unsatisfactory surface transport (rail and road), particularly to far-flung destinations which hinders accessibility and in-country movements; inadequate investment in tourism-related projects except in luxury accommodation; cumbersome and stringent visa regimes; low standard of services and facilities; unacceptable sanitation and hygiene standards at destinations; lack of diversified product development for quality tourist experience; limited leisure and recreational facilities; and, no common branding or marketing. In addition, several negative perceptions have contributed to this dismal scenario: safety and security, over-priced packages, and low value regional products.

The analysis also obtained feedback on the prospects for regional tourism from prospective consumer groups in selected countries which clearly concluded that with increasing but limited affluence, there is a growing desire to undertake regional travel and for cultural exploration, provided the air fares are competitive, tour prices affordable and visa regimes flexible. In view of rising internet penetration, they would very much like updated information from government and travel trade websites to facilitate decision-making. As to product preferences, in addition to cultural, mountain and beach tourism, the leanings were towards trekking, wildlife safaris, water sports, and other forms of adventure tourism, with health conscious seeking yoga and spa resorts for rejuvenation and relaxation. At the same time, they were unanimous in their view that political stability and personal safety and security are essential pre-requisites for regional tourism, otherwise consumer preferences would shift towards alternative recreational and leisure activities.

A synthesis of the foregoing would lead to a definite conclusion: there is scope, need and desire for regional cooperation, coordination and collaboration for development of intra-regional tourism in South Asia, with resultant economic, social and environmental benefits for the countries and their people.

So, what should be the first step forward? There is no denying the fact that governments and respective trade associations will have to reach a consensus on regional approach as a starting point, and once it is accepted, hand over the field to the private sector to operationalise and oversee the entire implementation process. For well-structured development and promotion, some kind of institutional structure is necessary to govern the implementation process. It is suggested that a virtual nucleus or coordination committee be established with representation from each country with national coordinators charged with the responsibility of keeping track of the process, and reviewing and monitoring its progress from time to time. The full coordination committee can meet twice a year to take stock of the situation and suggest corrective actions, if required.

As part of inclusive and integrated regional approach, some other tangible suggestions include:

• Air connectivity: thanks to Indian low cost carriers, air connections have improved a lot in the recent years but a lot more needs to be done, particularly in the context of secondary destinations
• Surface transport (rail and road): should be improved to facilitate travel to far-flung destinations and movements within a destination
• Visa regimes: streamline cumbersome immigration procedures with flexile visa policies
• Research and innovation: promote collaborative and collective studies
• Quality standards: prescribe minimum quality standards to ensure uniformity
• Other standards: improve sanitation and hygiene at destinations
• Service: enhance all-round service quality including staff attitude
• Human resource: intensive HRD programmes to enhance skills
• Safety: ensure personal safety and security of tourists
• Pricing: keep the package price affordable taking into account the average income levels in the region
• Product: add diversified products with new elements for quality tourist experience
• Leisure: diversify and add leisure activities to extend the duration of stay
• Thematic packages: float thematic packages such as Buddhist Circuit, Himalayan Trail, Riverine Tourism, Wellness Tourism, and Adventure Tourism which would be of particular interest to specific consumer groups
• Seasoning: formulate all-weather packages to minimise the seasonality affect
• Sustainability: develop and promote sustainable and responsible tourism to build resilient destinations and ensure that they are not affected by over-tourism in time and space (congestion, traffic jams, and noise and air pollution)
• Marketing: formulate and implement common marketing and promotion programmes
• Image: project an image of a unified, composite, all-weather, sustainable, affordable and high-value destination.

The game, if played with determination and sincerely, backed up with firm convictions and steely resolve, is going to end up in a win-win situation for all stakeholders.