NTB New CEO pledges to support the government's target of welcoming 1.6 milllion tourists

KATHMANDU, Sep 09: The newly elected CEO of Nepal Tourism Board, Deepak Raj Joshi, has pledged to focus on meeting the government's target of welcoming 1.6 million foreign tourists to the country.

The government has announced this in the budget for the current fiscal year.     

Assuming office today for the second time, Joshi said his priorities will be to promote the international market for Nepal's tourism with the identification of potential markets and areas.     

Talking to RSS, he said he is committed to supporting the effective implementation of the Visit Decade (2023-2031) announced by the government.     

He was the CEO of the Board in 2019 which marked the arrival of around 1.2 million foreign tourists. He got his term ended with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.     

As he said, Nepal's tourism sector needs more research and studies and he will do his best to address this gap as the CEO. He added that he has come up with a clear draft of his plan of action for the next four years and will be focused on implementing it. According to him, he will be unveiling his working strategy for the next four years soon.     

He expressed commitments to further expanding Nepal's tourism in the international market in partnership with the private sector. He asses that the shortage of required human resources is the major challenge for boosting up Nepal's tourism industry and will work for increasing the workforce in cooperation with the related agencies.     

 The 379th meeting of the Nepal Tourism Board, Board of Executive Committee on September 5 appointed Joshi to the post in accordance with the Nepal Tourism Board Act- 2053 BS (1997) for four years.     

He has been engaged in the development, expansion and promotion of the tourism sector for over two decades and already served as the Destination Committee Chair for the Pacific Asia Travel Association, funding executive member for the World Tourism Network and the General Director at the Confederation of the Nepalese Industries. He is the recipient of various awards including the 'Champion In Challenge', 'Tourism Hero', 'Best CEO', and 'PATA Personality of the Year'.