Poverty Alleviation through Tourism

 I, you and we make tourism. I guess everyone agree with this statement. Tourism is one of the strongest drivers of the world trade and prosperity. On the other side poverty is the result of unequal distribution of resources and opportunities. Today’s one of the world’s challenge is Poverty Alleviation. Despite turbulent times for the world’s economy, these basic facts are unlikely to change. Focusing the wealth creating power of tourism on people most in need remains gigantic task and opportunity.

Tourism is not related to any caste, religion, cultural or any racial group. It is all about the hospitality, services and beauty that one receives after experiencing it. The taste, color or a flavor of touristic understanding might differ from one part of world to other but the nature and in depth reality of hospitality behavior is almost the same to all.

“Guest are God, Guest are Always Right” are the statement that governs every tourism entrepreneur or service provider to the direction of respectful world. Either a tourist guide or an airlines ticket operator or a restaurant waiter or kitchen chef all are the part of a broader tourism horizon.

Today many countries have taken tourism as “engine for development” through creating tourist destinations and providing employment opportunities which sooner or later supports on earning the foreign exchange. And it is found that tourism contributes nearly 5% of world’s GDP and is also the fourth largest industry after fuels, chemicals and automobiles products. The wise part is it is responsible for one in every 12 jobs worldwide.

For least developing or developing counties, tourism can be the best option for the development of nation that is lifting up the life standard of people and carving a healthy and wealthy nation within the short period of time. But, it is not that easy as we read or say. All the tourism entrepreneurs, academics, policy makers, stake holders, local government and the local people all who share the tourism destination directly or indirectly should at least go through the following ways.

• All sorts of tourism should be concerned about poverty alleviation.
• Government should take poverty alleviation as a key aim of tourism, like as “Tourism for all”.
• The competitiveness and economic success of tourism business should be bench
  marked otherwise poor cannot be benefited.
• All tourism business should be concerned about its impact on the local community and should balance the poor with action.
• Tourism destination should be selected and managed with poverty alleviation as a central aim with strategies and action plans.
• Understanding tourism functions and its range of interest should always include the participation from the poor communities.
• Policies and license providing authorities should come with ranges of bench marking of standard, quality and cost inspections.

So, “Lets grow together” and “it’s our responsibility and duty to serve” sort of attitude should first come to all the tourism personals to make it happen. Sacrificing your little happiness and time to make other enjoy is the motto of tourism.

A Journey to a New Life

Everything is changing, you are changing in every second like all others. It is not philosophical, every sec the new cell or tissue is created or dead, hairs and nails becoming longer and heart pumping the blood. The blood passing to head through veins and creating lots of different feelings and emotions. So, everyone is changing. Nobody can stop it, because change is a phenomenon of everyone’s life.

Change on what, makes a significant differences. A baby boy grows young is normal process like a chick to a chicken, puppy to a dog. This physical growth is taken as minor issue and nobody cares about it even. The social changes is the one adopts has a significant role in one’s living.

A new beginning merely may not be a new, but is always considered as a new with lots of hopes, aim, and destinations. A new beginning always have love, will power, care support, moral, comfort, happiness, affection, help, share, team and society. It always starts with all positive signs and thoughts also the vibes.

I think a journey to a new life is only possible if you stay away from the regular society. The new beginning should be totally new with totally new people I mean with the people with new thoughts, new interest, with different expectations. New place, different people, different taste and lifestyle where you can change your thoughts and beliefs to the broader prospective with a wide horizon. So, that it become a remembrance and a memory to others but a new and a fruitful creation for you.

Friend and family are a part of life. You can make numerous friends in your life. But important is what sort of friends, good friends, lovely friends, common friends, best friends, boy/girl friend or usual friends and so on. As per the situation and necessary you keep on making friends and leaving them too. I say friends are conditional and also they should be conditional too. Whereas, family represents the parents and spouse which cannot be conditional. In some part of western society even they take family members also as a conditional.

A moral support, courage, wishes, hope and a sort of happiness is only expected from friends by everyone. If more than that is selfish behavior. And nobody lasts long with selfishness. You follow a business man and wants to be in his friends circle means that you have some hope that, he might be useful to you on any days in your life. Similarly, the same in college or university friends too. You don’t expect your friend do all your assignments or cook food for you each day. Your friendship with your peers/course mates is for a future prospect some days if in case necessary he/she might support you or your siblings, if not you may not meet him/her in your entire life. You can hardly remember your school or college friend and probably you may or may not be in contact in your rest of life so friendships are all conditional.

A journey to a new life for me means a journey to a new friendship. New friendship of lots of comfort, togetherness, love, sharing, feel and emotions except selfishness. Friends who can be fit in a frame so that will last ever.