Prepare roadmap to build Islamic tourism as brand: PM
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has called for making all-out efforts and roadmaps to build Islamic tourism as a 'world trade brand'.
She was inaugurating a two-day program marking the 'Dhaka as the OIC City of Tourism-2019' at the InterContinental Hotel Dhaka on Thursday (July 11).
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told the OIC and these organizations that it is necessary to have all-out efforts and roadmap to build Islamic tourism as a 'world trade brand'.
There will be necessary initiatives for simplifying the visa process, increasing investment, branding and upgrading in order to increase the flow of Inter-OIC tourism for the development of Islamic tourism, she also said.
The Prime Minister said, “I firmly believe that OIC member states will encourage their private sector to participate individually and collectively for the development of tourism sector infrastructure and development projects.
Referring to the huge size and potentially of Islamic tourism, Sheikh Hasina said that according to a report of OIC, the number of Muslim tourists is now 156 million in the world, which will increase to 180 million in 2020. In the same year, Muslims will be 26% of the world's population.
According to a report of Thomson-Reuters, the size of Islamic tourism market was 151 million US dollars in 2015, of which the market of OIC countries was approximately 109 billion US dollars. The Islamic tourism market will rise by 8.3 percent annually by US $ 244 billion by 2021.
Highlighting the emerging Islamic economy, the Prime Minister said, "Islamic Economy" has been developing in new shape nowadays. Halal Foods, Islamic Finance, Halal Pharmaceuticals and Cosmetics, Halal Tourism etc are the growing sectors of Islamic economy.
Cooperation and participation of both the public and private sector of the OIC member states is absolutely necessary to develop these sectors, she added.
