Nepal will host the country's first international LGBT+ tourism conference

KATHMANDU, Dec 14:Nepal will host its first LGBT+ tourism conference in January 2024, with the aim of establishing the Himalayan country as a welcome destination for all sexual minorities on the international travel map.

This two-day meeting will begin on January 18th in Kathmandu, following a landmark decision in November that made Nepal the first South Asian country to allow same-sex marriage.

Sunil Babu Pant, Asia's first homosexual former MP and leading LGBTQ rights activist, told reporters on Wednesday that Nepal is considered a winner and provides hope for LGBTI rights in South Asia. At the moment, everything is in order.

Nepal has long drawn trekkers and mountaineers from all over the world. Now, the country is preparing to attract LGBT+ tourists and provide additional job opportunities. Because of their unique orientation, these individuals are rarely given the opportunity to work abroad.

Pant noted that the conference has the potential to attract LGBT+ tourists and promote Nepal as a welcoming country. Every year, about one million Nepalis seek jobs abroad, primarily in Malaysia and the Gulf Cooperation Council, where restrictions against the LGBT+ community can be harsh.