‘Pakistan must launch tourism campaigns’

Agreements with low budget airlines could potentially boost tourism: envoy

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan must launch tourism campaigns that should be shown in targeted countries in order to attract more and more tourists as the country possesses huge potential in the tourism sector. This was said by Spanish Ambassador Manuel Duran.

“In Spain we have all seen wonderful initiatives from countries that have been totally unknown to Spanish tourists and the results have been very positive,” he added.

Croatia, Malta, and other European countries that were not known by Spanish travelers were now typical summer favorites and that was all thanks to very well planned campaigns and agreements with low budget airlines which were eager to expand their list of destinations.

Pakistan must also develop its network of hotels and restaurants to offer a variety of high quality places to stay and eat, Duran said.

There is also room for improvement in the field of infrastructure to attract tourists you must first prepare the country for the potential visitors. Spain can offer its experience and know how to help Pakistan in developing this promising industry, he added.

Ambassador Duran during a media interview further said Spain was an important EU member state therefore it can help increase availability of Pakistani products in various EU markets.

The ambassador said that he, together with the commercial attaché of the embassy, has established links with various business enterprises of Pakistan with the intention of promoting trade and economic links between the two countries.

He said the chambers of commerce were useful to guide possible future investors in Pakistan and also to organise trade fairs that Spanish entrepreneurs could attend. They could promote trade and economic links between two countries because they can illuminate on what Pakistan can give and on what Pakistan expects from us.

He said the very idea of the EU is to establish a common market with common rules. Therefore the tariffs applied to Pakistani products in Spain will be equal to the ones applied by other EU member states.

Pakistan is already enjoying the GSP+ (GSP+: GSP means a partial or full removal of customs duties on two thirds of tariff lines and the + stands for the special incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance.)

It slashes these same tariffs to 0% for vulnerable, low and lower-middle income countries that implement 27 international conventions related to human rights, labour rights, protection of the environment and good governance)

Spain can very well encourage Pakistan to comply with the conditions under which the GPS + status was granted to Pakistan by the EU.

“As you know, this preferential status is offered to Pakistan in exchange for certain commitments it has assumed. Spain can only help Pakistan retain this status by reminding Pakistan of these commitments,” he added.

To a question about Pakistani diaspora in Spain the ambassador said it was very difficult to provide a precise figure because many Pakistanis who arrived in Spain years ago have obtained the Spanish citizenship, therefore they are not registered as Pakistanis in Spain but as Spaniards.  Nevertheless, the figure that we often give is 100,000. “Most of them live in or near Catalonia, and they are really hard working people who definitely contribute to the welfare of our country with their efforts,” Duran said.

“Well, there are always cases of illegal immigrants arriving, not only to Spain, but to other EU countries. Once they arrive in a country which is part of the Schengen treaty, they can travel freely within the Schengen space. But these are very isolated cases and we cannot talk about a trend or about a massive flux of Pakistani immigrants arriving into Schengen right now.”

He said he was he was happy to announce that the visa upon arrival for Spanish businessmen travelling to Pakistan is already a reality.

“I have spoken with some businessmen who have come to Islamabad for several meetings and they have already benefitted from this new system.

As soon as tourists begin to realise that they do not need to go the Pakistani Embassy to get a visa to visit Pakistan, I am sure that the number of Spanish tourists will increase”.  

Published in The Express Tribune, October 29^th, 2019.