Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP)

Topic: Revival of the Tourism Industry in the Holiday Season

Course Title: Business Communication
Course Code: BUS 7202
Group-06

Submitted To:
Prof. Nafees Ahmed Imtiazuddin
Faculty of Business Studies
Bangladesh University of Professionals

Submitted By:
Name ID
Provat Raihan 2223031056
Nur A Jannat Shampa 22230331058
Julius Ceaser Lemon 22230331064
Khandakar Shajia Farjana Shuasha 22230331077
Md. Adib Hossin Srijon 22230331081
Rafia Ferdous Mim 22230331083
Fatema Tuz Zohora 22230331084
K.M Kamrul Islam Tareq 22230331106

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Letter of Submission

20th March, 2023

Prof. Nafees Ahmed Imtiazuddin

Bangladesh University of Professionals

Subject: Prayer for acceptance of the submission of our report

Dear Sir,
We would gladly like to inform you that we are the student of your BUS- 7202, section-B. It gives
us pleasure that we have completed the pare work on working Revival of the Tourism Industry
in the Holiday Season successfully. We tried out our best to utilize and use the knowledge that
we got through this course.

We hope that our assignment will be able to meet the expectation that you want from us. And if

there any errors and mistakes are found; we wish it will be considered with sympathy.Therefore,
we would like to request you to accept our report and oblige thereby.

Sincerely yours,

Provat Raihan
Nur A Jannat Shampa
Julius Ceaser Lemon
Khandakar Shajia Farjana Shuasha
Md. Adib Hossin Srijon
Rafia Ferdous Mim
Fatema Tuz Zohora
K.M Kamrul Islam Tareq

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Acknowledgement

At the very beginning we would like to express our sincere gratitude to Almighty God for giving
us patience & hope to finish the task within the scheduled time. We are feeling very thankful and
therefore special thanks to our honourable faculty who gave us the opportunity to use our
knowledge, skill and made us to practice this type of work so that we can do well in future.
Therefore, our sincere gratitude goes to our honourable faculty Prof. Nafees Ahmed Imtiazuddin,
instructor of BUS-7202, BUP. Without his support and encouragement and such an attempt to
enhance our practical knowledge about real situations, this assignment would not be possible. We
tried our best to implement the knowledge and skill that we learned from our course, study
materials, Internet, etc. Mainly Google is always there for us. At the last but not least we are
thankful to all our group members who have been always helping and encouraging us throughout
the whole assignment

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Executive Summary

The tourism industry in Bangladesh is one of the most significant contributors to the economy.
However, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 had a massive impact on the tourism
industry, with a significant drop in the number of tourists. As the world slowly recovered from the
pandemic, again things did not pan out as expected. The Russian invasion of Ukraine on February
24, 2022 threatened humanity, and the prospects of the rally of domestic tourism. This paper aimed
at establishing protocol in the domestic tourism industry in Bangladesh by identifying appropriate
initiatives and ways, so that the sector does not run losses again. The information is conducted
through field study and analyzing available secondary data. The field study has conducted with a
sample size of 100 people. The paper has tried to analyze the revival of the tourism industry during
the holiday season, identify the reasons that hamper the flourishment of the industry, and ways to
overcome them. And lastly, there have included some recommendations for establishing protocols
in the domestic tourism industry in Bangladesh.

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Contents Page

Content Title Page

Introduction 06
Scope of the report 07
Objectives 08
Methodology 09-10
Salient Information 11
Analysis 12-14
Findings 15-19
Recommendations 20-21

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Introduction

The tourism industry in Bangladesh plays a significant role in the economy by directly contributing
to the total GDP, though the tourist destinations rarely draw visitors from abroad, many domestic
travelers schedule their travel to visit domestic tourist destinations each year. However, there has
been a noticeable decline in the number of domestic tourists as a result of the outbreak of the
COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and the Russia- Ukraine war in 2022. Through the field and desk
study, there will find out the protocols for the revival of the domestic tourism industry in the
holiday season.

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Scope of the Report

The tourism industry is a large industry including tour operators, hotels, resorts, airlines, catering
services, and others so on. But this paper is not focused on the whole hospitality sector rather it
focuses on the only domestic tourism industry. As the tourist places in Bangladesh hardly attract
foreign tourists, therefore the people within the region are focused to get information for this paper.
So the scope of the study is to establish the protocols for the revival of the domestic tourism
industry during the holiday seasons. At present, this study of establishing protocols for the revival
of the domestic tourism industry is important for all kinds of tourists, tour operators, other relevant
communities, and as well as the government also. This paper is based on both primary and
secondary data sources. Though because of time shortage and other limitations, it was not possible
to reach the main tourist places physically and most of the respondents were tourists, but the
persons who were directly connected to the service provider to the tourists, were fewer in number
as respondents and the reason was because of some restrictions from their sides, they did not
respond to the questionnaire.

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Objectives

i. To identify appropriate initiatives to be taken to revive the tourism industry in post COVID-19
era.

ii. To identify ways to revive tourism through coordinated efforts of all stakeholders.

iii. To establish protocol in the Domestic tourism industry in Bangladesh, so that we do not run
losses again.

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Methodology

The paper is based on field study for primary source of information and desk study for secondary
source of information to find out the proper information as well as taking decision properly.

Data collection method

A) Primary data

Primary sources are used for preparing this report in a maximal way. For this particular
study, surveys are used as means of collecting data through google forms and that really
has increased the validity of the research paper to a great extent. The questionnaire has 10
questions with three options in each question, is used to collect data from 100 people,
among them, there are the concerned authority of tourism organizations, travel agencies
and the general people. General people are a significant source of primary data for the
survey. The survey has helped find effective data and real-time analysis. The expertise of
tourism agencies also provided their point of view as well.

. B) Secondary data

Secondary sources are used for preparing this report in a minimal way and it is a method
of collecting data from where the data already have been used previously in any study. The
secondary sources include textbook related to tourism and hotel management articles, e-
journals, magazines, newspaper articles related with tourism and websites of different
organizations such as Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC), Ministry of Civil Aviation
and Tourism, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBC) and different sites for the opinion of
the expertise of tourism agencies. Also, internet has been used as the major source of
secondary data because of its relevance with the topic.

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Questionnaire Observation

A set of 10 questions with 03 choices of answers are formed in an ascending order, to get
responses from individual sources for the purpose of the survey. Where all the questions are
based on the 3 objectives of the study. This study has been carried out for 2 months of time limit
February to March, 2023. After a period of two months, it was completed and the survey was
done smoothly.

Measurement Scale

• Choices are marked by maintaining ascending order in every question

Choice 1 = Choice 2 = 10 mark Choice 3 = 15 mark

5 mark

And "0 mark" is considered for “No feedback”

• An interval scaling method is ordaining to measure the level of response

from the total survey:

SL. No. Response Range (%)

1 Poor ≤34

2 Average 35-51

3 Good 52-68

4 Excellent ˃68

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Salient Information

Bangladesh is a country that is often overlooked when it comes to tourism. However, it is a country
that is rich in culture, history, and natural beauty. In the last couple of years, the tourism sector
had managed to muster the capability to be recognized as a catalyst, though negligible, to national
economic growth. But the coronavirus dread and the Russia-Ukraine war have blurred the
achievement. The Economic impact of pandemic and war are so acute on economy of the world.
With the responses of many countries, the situation emerged with uncertainties and challenges
from many fronts. Alike other countries’ Bangladesh’s economy was mostly affected negatively
which also hampered the recovery from pandemic stress.

The Impact of Ukraine-Russia War. The period (from 2020 to till now) is an
extraordinary time from a global perspective. the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and related
sanctions are impacting all economies in the world. The euro has fallen below the dollar for the
second time after 20 years when the first time it traded below the dollar was in December 2002.
Similarly, BDT and Rupee also lost value against the dollar by 10.08% and 7.02% respectively
whereas Russian Ruble gained 34.14% (ICAB Org, 2023). The change was mainly caused by the
Federal Reserve of the USA’s hiking interest rate which led foreign investors to move money to
the USA and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushed up commodity prices globally, particularly
crude oil, resulting in a higher trade deficit. The Bangladesh Bank's policy on the exchange rate
heavily without adjusting the inflation differences further thronged the problem in Bangladesh.
Also, the trade deficit is the highest ever in the history of Bangladesh. As a result, all the sectors
of Bangladesh has severely affected and the tourism industry is not different from the others.
Sudden inflationary pressures fell heavily on people in Bangladesh to cope with crises. Even at
present, it is quite tough for the general people to meet all of their basic rights, whereas tourism is
counted as a luxury for them. In light of the current scenario, the strategy of a conservative
approach toward expanding the economy would be a prudent step. To tackle these record-breaking
hits, the government as well as the relevant communities in the tourism industry must rationalize
spending and prioritize more sustainability of economic growth and resilience. So that the revival
of the tourism industry can happen as well as it can participate in the total GDP of the country.

Analysis

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Bangladesh boasts the world’s longest unbroken sea beach Cox’s Bazar, the world’s biggest
mangrove forest and world heritage Sundarbans, Tanguar Haor and many wetlands and rivers and
tourist spots of immense natural beauty. Yet the country ranks at the bottom of the world where
the tourism sector is concerned. The country lags behind many South Asian countries in this sector.
As the tourist places in Bangladesh hardly attract foreign tourists, therefore the people within the
region are the tourists of the country.

For the last couple of years, the tourism sector has managed to muster the capability to be
recognized as a catalyst, though negligible, to national economic growth. The tourism industry has
become one of the most significant contributors to the global economy, creating job opportunities
and generating revenue. However, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 had a massive
impact on the tourism industry, with a significant drop in the number of tourists worldwide. As the
world slowly recovers from the pandemic, the tourism industry is reviving, particularly in the
holiday season. The holiday season, which includes Eid-Ul-Adha, Eid-Ul- Fithr, Different Pujas,
Christmas, New Year, and other festivals, is traditionally a time when people travel to spend time
with their families and friends, and this trend had almost stopped for the pandemic and after that
for the war. The issues left the country exposed to the wrath of the war, which escalated global
commodity prices. This sparked a cost of living crisis in Bangladesh, drained the central bank's
reserves at an alarming rate, compelled the government to go into harsh austerity mode, and left
the economy mumbling.

COVID-19 has severely impacted on the tourism industry worldwide, and Bangladesh is no
exception. The pandemic has caused a massive decline in the number of tourists visiting the
country. The domestic tourism industry has also suffered due to the pandemic, with people being
reluctant to travel within the country due to fear of the virus. This has had a significant impact on
the livelihoods of people who are dependent on the tourism industry for their income. Hotels,
restaurants, and other businesses that cater to tourists have been struggling to stay afloat due to the
lack of customers. In 2022, the inbound tourism sector suffered a 35% negative growth year-on-
year (Bangladesh Parjatan Govt, 2022). However, with the rollout of vaccines and the gradual
easing of restrictions, there is hope that the tourism industry in Bangladesh will recover. The
government has announced several stimulus packages to support the industry and has also
launched a campaign to promote domestic tourism. As people become more comfortable with

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traveling, there is hope that the tourism industry in Bangladesh will slowly but surely return to its
former glory.

As the world slowly recovered from the pandemic, again things did not pan out as expected. The
Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, threatened humanity, and the prospects of the
rally of domestic tourism. The Economic impact of war is so bad on this integrated interdependent
economy is more costly than the war itself. With the responses of many countries, the situation
emerged with uncertainties and challenges from many fronts. Being an import dependent country
Bangladesh’s economy was mostly affected negatively which also hampered the recovery from
pandemic stress. The period (from 2020 to till now) is an extraordinary time from a global
perspective. the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and related sanctions are impacting all economies in
the world. The euro has fallen below the dollar for the second time after 20 years when the first
time it traded below the dollar was in December 2002. Similarly, BDT and Rupee also lost value
against the dollar by 10.08% and 7.02% respectively whereas Russian Rouble gained 34.14%
(ICAB Org, 2023). Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushed up commodity prices globally,
particularly crude oil, resulting in a higher trade deficit. The Bangladesh Bank's policy on the
exchange rate heavily without adjusting the inflation differences further thronged the problem in
Bangladesh. Since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war, the clock of inflation is ticking up. the
forex market got volatile, commodity price was soaring at a bull and overall supply-demand
hampered the world order. Almost every country was feeling the heat and Bangladesh was no
different. The rate of inflation raised to a decade high in many countries which in real terms would
be double-digit. the price of many commodities skyrocketed with multiple times price hikes. this
situation made all economic indicators look gloomy such as the balance of payments, remittance,
national reserve etc. The policy response was obvious but for an import-dependent country like
Bangladesh, it was hard to choose. People got nervous with the unprecedented level of inflation
since it created a hue and cry in the market felt from macro to micro level. Even at present, it is
quite tough for the general people to meet all of their basic rights, whereas tourism is counted as a
luxury for them. In light of the current scenario, the strategy of a conservative approach toward
expanding the economy would be a prudent step. To tackle these record-breaking hits, the
government as well as the relevant communities in the tourism industry must rationalize spending
and prioritize more sustainability of economic growth and resilience. So that the revival of the
tourism industry can happen as well as it can participate in the total GDP of the country.

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Findings

1. Existing Problems of Domestic Tourism. Domestic tourism sector could be one of the
booming sectors of Bangladesh. However, due to various existing problems, the domestic tourism
has become one of the despairing sectors of our tourism. Meanwhile, after the pandemic, the
situation has become worse. It has been found that, amidst recent problems like Ukraine-Russia
war, lack of congenial environment and impact of the COVID pandemic, the impact of the
pandemic has caused most of the existing problem.

Figure-1: Existing Problems of Domestic Tourism (Source: Survey Data)

2. Shortages of Tourist Spots. Despite being blessed by varied land features Bangladesh has
inadequate tourist spots. has been observed that among the reasons of the inadequacy lack of
maintenance of tourist spots lack of awareness along with initiative and inadequate tourist facilities
are there no notable ones. Likewise, the service suggests that these three elements at the primary
causes. However, lack of maintenance of scenic tourist attraction sports is the key factor for
Bangladesh being in such situation.

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 Figure-2: Reason behind inadequate tourist spots (Source: Survey Data)

3. Current Focus of Government in Tourism Sector. Meanwhile another triggering factor

behind the lacking of domestic tourism is the government itself. It has been found that due to
inadequate focus And in some cases, little to no focus at all it's causing the domestic tourism sector
to struggle even in this 21st century.

Figure-3: Condition of current focus of government (Source: Survey Data)

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4. Key Shortcomings of Domestic Tourism Sector. Ever since independence, domestic tourism
had been one of the downtrodden sectors of Bangladesh. The covid pandemic has made it feebler
in 2020-21. Meanwhile, in the post covid era, the shortcomings had not been eradicated yet. It has
been found that fear of losses due to another pandemic, lack of capital and economic capacity etc
are the key factors in case of domestic tourism sector.

Figure-4: Key shortcomings in domestic sector (Source: Survey Data)

5. Steps Taken So Far. It is true that the domestic tourism sector has been struggling much
since COVID-19 pandemic. In this respect, many steps have been taken from different corners.
Measures like developing infrastructure, encouraging entrepreneurs, developing transport and
hospitality facilities etc are prominent. The study found out that infrastructural development is the
key feature for steps taken to revive tourism at present.

6. Sustainable Solutions to Revive Domestic Tourism. Along with short term

solutions, long term sustainable solutions are also important for domestic tourism sector.
Immediate responses like one time incentive may temporarily solve the issue. However, efforts
like allowing and promoting domestic investment, attracting foreign investors and patronizing
local entrepreneurs may change the overall paradigm of domestic tourism in Bangladesh.
Moreover, it is believed by many that, more participation by domestic investors may help this

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industry to revive in the long run. In this regard, key steps like provision loans on easier terms to
domestic investors and enhancing mass awareness may contribute a lot.

Figure-5: Sustainable steps taken to revive domestic tourism sector (Source: Survey Data)

7. Requirement of training and skill development. Investment,mass awareness and

promotion may not deem to be effective unless we focus on manpower development, training and
skill enhancement of employees in this sector. This study finds that majority of the respondents
have opined that institutionalization and education of hospitality management is a dire need now.
It is also worth mentionable that almost 64% respondents have emphasized on training and skill
development over secured transportation and security aspects.

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Figure-6: Prime Requirement for Development of Domestic Tourism Sector (Source: Survey Data)

8. Finding Alternatives from Foreign-Private Partnership. Of late, many countries in

Asia and Africa have developed their tourism sectors through foreign private partnerships.
Countries like China, Japan, EU etc. are offering loans and partnership schemes on easier terms.
Therefore, the government may explore this opportunity to boost the domestic tourism sector in
future.

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Recommendations

Based on the above study, analysis and findings, this paper recommends the
following:

a. Short Term Recommendations.

(1) The ministry of tourism may formulate a committee comprising of high

officials of the stakeholders in order to find out immediate plan of action
to revive the domestic tourism by 2025. Based on the committee report, a
pilot project may be adopted by the government in any suitable tourist
location.

(2) New investments by both local and foreign investors may be

encouraged in our fiscal policy of 2024-25 FY. The government should
emphasize on low interest involvements by the investors to develop the
overall scenario of Bangladesh’s Domestic Tourism.

b. Mid- Term Recommendations.

(1) In the mid term, government may focus on building tourist hubs
in recommended tourist locations by the committee report. Moreover, by
2027, all the necessary infrastructures and facilities may be established.

(2) Mass awareness build up program may be taken by all

stakeholders both at home and abroad to revitalize our domestic tourism
by 2028. Moreover, examples of nearby tourist destinations and popular
countries like India, Thailand etc. may be implemented.

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c. Long-Term Recommendations.

(1) Bangladesh Government may plan for building model tourism hubs
across the country. Moreover, a sustainable development plan for the
tourism hubs may be developed which would be of international standard.

(2) Bangladesh may focus more on patronizing healthy competition in

domestic tourism sector. A strong labour union of the employees involved
in all nook and corners of domestic tourism sector may aid to their
existence and better governance within the next decade.

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 ❖ Appendix:
SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE

1. In terms of domestic tourism what are the existing problems?

a. Covid-19 Pandemic

b. Ukraine-Russia War

c. Lack of environment

2. Why doesn’t Bangladesh have adequate tourist spot despite being blessed by varied land
features?

a. Due to lack of maintenance

b. Lack of awareness and initiative

c. Inadequate tourist facilities

3. How is the current focus of government in tourism sector?

a. No focus at all

b. Inadequate

c. Adequate

4. What are the key factors in which domestic tourism has shortcomings in post covid era?

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 a. Fear of losses as covid is still there

b. Lack of capital

c. Economic capacity of people

5. What are the steps that have been taken to revive tourism at present?

a. Developing infrastructure

b. Encouraging entrepreneurs

c. Transport and hospitality facilities.

6. What is the key step that needs to be taken to revive domestic tourism?

a. Develop infrastructure by government initiative.

b. Build new roads

c. Develop new tourist destinations and access.

7. Which is the most sustainable step to revive domestic tourism?

a. Allow domestic investment

b. Attract foreign investors

c. Patronize local entrepreneurs

8. What is the key step to protect domestic tourism sector?

a. Provide easy loans to existing investors

b. Decrease taxes in foreign investment

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 c. Enhance mass awareness and domestic funding.

9. Promotion may bring effective results in revival of domestic tourism. But before that what else
need to be done?

a. Enhance professionalism in tourism sector

b. Secure roads and highways

c. Provide better policing and ensure security

10. Recently countries like China has contributed a lot in infrastructural and tourism
development of several countries of Asia and Africa. What should be Bangladesh’s approach in
this context:

a. Enhance foreign-private partnership.

b. Incorporate contractual development programs.

c. Solely rely on govt and local investments.

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