Nepalese Youth and NTY 2011

Nepalese Youth and Nepal Tourism Year 2011


We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.

-Franklin D. Roosevelt


Youths are the vital workforce of any nation. Being the social actors of change, they are full of energy, enthusiasm and creativity. As the saying goes "Youths are not only the leaders of tomorrow, they are the partners of today." In today’s world where youths dominate most of the sectors, their role in any developmental activities cannot be ignored and their contribution therefore is highly needed. In context of Nepal, youths comprise more than half of the country’s population and represent the country’s major human resource. They are the inseparable parts of the important areas of national life ranging from education, health and economy to conservation and preservation of culture and nature, and the development of tourism in the country. Likewise, Nepalese youths play a very constructive and crucial role in the success and promotion of national tourism campaigns like NTY 2011.


Nepal Tourism Year 2011( NTY 2011) is one of the biggest and most important national tourism campaigns officially launched by the Government of Nepal in February 26, 2010 with the aim of bringing at least one million international tourists to Nepal by the year 2011 and spread its benefits to people at large. Nepal, a dreamland for nature lovers and true admirers of culture, a land of snowcapped mountains and quiet rivers, of ancient preserved cities and temples, is certainly a natural paradise for all those who love its beauty and admire its culture. The very rich culture and nature of Nepal attracts millions of tourists from all over the world, making Nepal a prime tourist destination. And various efforts have been made from different levels for the promotion and development of tourism in the country. NTY 2011 is the outcome of the same effort and it aims to bring everyone together for the attainment of the target of bringing 1 million tourists by 2011. NTY 2011 envisions harnessing the immense tourism potentials and strengths of the country and promoting the common tourism brand "Naturally Nepal once is not enough." It aims to bring together the commitment of the government, expertise and experiences of the organizations like Nepal Tourism Board, aptitude and dynamism of the private sector and communities for further tourism development in the country.


NTY 2011 targets to establish Nepal as a choice of premier holiday destination with definite brand image. It aims to enhance the capacity of tourism sectors together with building community capacity, improve and extend tourism related infrastructures in existing and new tourism sites and promote sustainability of the industry. NTY 2011 offers wide range of opportunities for the overall development of the nation resulting in better employment opportunities, more revenue generation, better investments, better industrial development, development of infrastructures, economic growth, cultural exchange and development of international understanding and co-operation. It also helps in the extension of Nepalese market to the neighboring countries- India and China and provides better opportunities of research and development of tourism products. Being a country bestowed with both natural and cultural heritages, NTY 2011 can promote and glorify this rare beauty and significance of Nepal all over the world. Thus I believe, NTY 2011 can open the door of immense opportunities, which will finally result in the overall development of the country.


So what can we do from our level for the promotion of NTY 2011? To be more specific, what role do Nepalese youths play in the promotion and successful completion of NTY 2011? Well, Nepalese youth have a very important role in the success of NTY 2011.In fact, Nepalese youths and NTY 2011 are complementary and interdependent terms. As a major tourism workforce and educated, skilled, creative, and capable human resource of the nation, Nepalese youths act as the driving forces for the success of NTY 2011. If we give a glance to the history of tourism development in Nepal, we can find that Nepalese youths have contributed greatly in the development of tourism in the country. Be it in the field of development of adventure or sports tourism or the development of hotel enterprises in the country, the contribution and positive role of Nepalese youths always comes to the forefront. In my opinion, the innovative and creative ideas, the strong will power and determination and a broader and wider perspective of Nepalese youths can be put together for the betterment of NTY 2011. There are various economical, social, political, cultural, environmental, promotional and human roles that Nepalese youths can and should play in the promotion and success of NTY 2011. As major stakeholders, entrepreneurs, policy makers, planners, initiators, managers, pressure groups, environmentalists, advisors, volunteers, and cultural promoters, Nepalese youths play a very dynamic and far-reaching role in NTY 2011.

First of all, Nepalese youths are comparatively more aware about the country’s immense tourism potentials and prospects. They know how best we can use our resources for attracting maximum number of tourists to Nepal. Different campaigns, programs, exhibitions, festivals and fairs for the promotion of NTY 2011 have been organized in different countries with active participation and initiation from Nepalese youths. The Embassy of Nepal, London, took part in the grand London Mela- 2010, held in Gunnersbury Park of Central London on 08 August 2010. Nepalese artists and volunteers, comprising mostly youths represented our country in the fair. It was effective of its kind in promoting and marketing Nepal's identity. Placing NTY 2011 in focus, activities such as Nepali Paperedge youth band, Naumati cultural band, Nepalese folk dances were performed and the taste of Nepali cuisine, too, was organized. Similarly Nepalese youths comprising mainly professionals and students of Washington Metropolitan organized NTY 2011 Promotion Campaign at Washington DC. Many enthusiastic tourists were provided with information about Nepal on various attractions and events, natural beauty, adventures and other travel information. Many other NTY 2011 promotional campaigns have been organized with active participation and initiation from Nepalese youths in different parts of the world. At the same time, internet marketing which has emerged as the new and innovative tool for promotion has been largely controlled and operated by Nepalese youths. We can find numerous examples of Nepalese youths, residing both inside and outside the country using blogs and social networking sites like Facebook for the promotion of NTY 2011.

Youths are the major tourism entrepreneurs. All the sectors related to tourism like Hotels, Lodges, Travel Agencies, Handicraft and other Hospitality Sectors are mostly run and operated by youths. They are acting as the fuel for tourism development and promotion by providing the much needed tourism amenities, accommodation, and entertainment. At the same time, these energetic youth entrepreneurs are coming up with new and innovative ideas and plans for the promotion of NTY 2011 and the development of quality tourism. Various hotels and lodges have upgraded their existing quality, expanding their accommodation capacity and providing training and information to staffs and managers to win tourists' appreciation. Thus, the leadership and managerial roles of Nepalese youths in NTY 2011 is phenomenal.

Proper research for the development of tourism in Nepal is an essential aspect of NTY 2011. Nepalese youths with their unconventional thoughts and innovative plans can and have been contributing significantly in the field of tourism research and development. Many researches have been conducted on the development of tourism products and the expansion of tourism market. One of the major goals of NTY 2011 is to explore the prospects of alternative tourism in Nepal and strengthen the role of community in tourism development and management for the development of alternative tourism like domestic tourism, village tourism and endemic tourism. Similarly, exploration of new destinations and trekking routes are the other major goals of NTY 2011. And Nepalese youths have been working to meet these goals with their joint efforts through their tourism enterprises like Travel Agencies, Trekking Agencies etc. The development of sports and adventure tourism activities like bungee jumping, rafting, mountaineering, paragliding which are the major tourism attractions and hallmarks of NTY 2011 have been largely initiated and managed by Nepalese youths. The recently introduced concepts of Eco Tourism and Sustainable Tourism have now become synonymous with NTY 2011. In fact, "Promoting the concept of Eco tourism” is an important marketing objectives of NTY 2011. And the roles and efforts of Nepalese youths in maintaining a sustainable environment in the country are manifold. Be it from the individual level or organizational level, Nepalese youths have been actively involved in environmental protection and conservation, and their impact is getting deeper. Organizations like Yatra, TUDE etc. have been working in the field of environment protection and tourism development. Tourism development Endeavors (TUDE) is not for profit organization established with the objective "to promote sustainable, ethical and decentralized tourism in Nepal through research, exploration, documentation and promotion." TUDE focuses on alternative model and approaches of tourism to achieve its goal of Sustainable Tourism for Development.

Nepalese youths represent the new generation. They are more open and receptive to others culture and tradition. They love and respect their own culture and at the same time, can embrace the culture and traditions of others. No other segment of the community can have greater degree of cultural closeness; feeling of cooperation and fraternity than youths. So Nepalese youths promote NTY 2011 by generating the feeling of cultural receptiveness and by making the tourists feel more welcomed. Cultural and social exchange together with the promotion of international understanding and relations which are crucial components of NTY 2011 can be better facilitated by the Nepalese youths. At the same time, Nepalese youths play a vital role in the promotion of NTY 2011 by the promotion and preservation of Nepalese art and culture. Many Nepalese artisans, entrepreneurs and activists consisting mainly youths, have been helping in cultural promotion of the country by creating markets of Nepalese handicrafts, organizing international cultural festivals, working with different cultural bodies and agencies nationally and internationally and making strong agendas addressing cultural issues and their restoration.

Nepal is in currently going through a transitional phase and with the mal practice of political activities like protest and agitation, the image of Nepal is getting ruined. The increasing political instability and insecurity in the country have posed the greatest threat to NTY 2011. And due to the unstable condition a lot of countries have banned and restricted their citizens from travelling to Nepal. In a situation like this, Nepalese youths have the vital role of creating political stable and peaceful environment by developing and implementing firm mechanisms to deal with this issue. In fact, the young leaders have stressed that Nepal should be identified as a symbol of peace and beauty in order to make NTY 2011 a success. Young leaders from different political parties have expressed their political commitment to exyend help from their respective sectors for shunning “banda” and strike in the country. Nepali Congress leader Gagan Thapa has expressed his view that all Nepalese should be united to make Nepal Tourism successful. Representation and active participation from the major political parties, members of the Constitution Assembly and Right groups is always taken into prominence in order to make the NTY 2011 inclusive and participatory effective in result. Thus, as major pressure groups, Nepalese youths can pressurize and compel these political parties and leaders to maintain peace and stability in the country to make NTY 2011 successful.


A Case Study: Creative Youth Organization, CYON

Creative Youth Organization Nepal, CYON is a youth, non-profit organization working in the field of preservation of intangible cultural heritage through youth mobilization. CYON also works on environment preservation and restoration, youth empowerment and social issues. Its main missions are to preserve and promote folk arts and culture, create market for Nepali traditional handicrafts, organize international cultural festivals and work with different cultural bodies and agencies nationally and internationally to achieve the goal of cultural restoration.
Creative Youth Cultural Group is the first Youth Folkloric organization established by Creative Youth Organization Nepal in Nepal since 2007. It has been known for its work and will be working towards promoting Nepali culture and tradition throughout the world.
From the case study, we can conclude that Nepalese youths can and are playing a significant and inevitable role in the promotion and success of NTY 2011 by preserving and promoting rich Nepalese culture and traition. As the major and efficient workforce of the country, they have been initiating, coordinating, managing, leading, volunteering, and mobilizing various programs and activities for NTY 2011.On the other hand, NTY 2011 has a great impact in the lives of the Nepalese youths. Tourism development is interlinked with youth development and tourism promotional campaigns like NTY 2011 helps massive promotion and development of Nepal's tourism sector. This is directly related with the economic, social, cultural and overall development of the country. NTY 2011 creates employment opportunities for the youths and helps address the burning issues of unemployment and poverty. NTY 2011 and tourism sector provides employment to skilled, unskilled as well as semi-skilled human resource. It also provides the opportunities of wider better investment options and opportunities fuelling the growth of national industries and enterprises, which again means more employment and economic opportunities. It also results in Youth capacity development and empowerment. The development of Village Tourism can make the rural communities and rural youths more aware and empowered, both economically and socially. At the same time, Nepalese youths have opportunities of cultural exchange, learning new language, culture and getting in touch with the global community. Thus, NTY 2011 is directly related to the youth development and economic and social prosperity. It helps in the development of rural areas, development of infrastructures and industries, increase in economic status and purchasing power of people, increases employment opportunities and the social, cultural and overall development of Nepal.
Therefore, Nepalese youths and NTY 2011 are complementary to each other. More importantly, with their initiative and contribution to NTY 2011 Nepalese youths can address and help minimize the country’s major concerns of poverty and unemployment, resulting in overall development of the country. NTY 2011 is very important and crucial for our country and Nepalese youths’ active and strong role in NTY 2011 can bring a new era of peace and progress in Nepal. Together, we can build ourselves for our future!