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Taking forward its plans to rev up the state’s travel and hospitality sector, Kerala Tourism will be holding the Tourism Investors Meet in the capital city, Thiruvananthapuram on November 16. The idea behind is to showcase the available investment opportunities in destinations, products and initiatives that mark the state as an all-season experiential tourism hub.
Minister for Tourism and PWD, PA Mohamed Riyas said that the thrust areas and locations that need more investments have been identified and they will be unveiled before the investors and other stakeholders from India and abroad.
“Tourism sector is a highly promising area for Kerala, whose full investment potential is yet to be tapped effectively. The investors meet will make major strides in that direction,” Riyas said.
Tamil Nadu has set the ball rolling to attract investments of `20,000 crore in tourism in the next five years. Its first policy on tourism, unveiled a fortnight ago, declared tourism an ‘industry’ to ease the way for investments. The move will leverage tourism to help achieve Tamil Nadu’s target of being a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
The event will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at Hyatt Regency Thycaud and is expected to be attended by around 350 investors. It will unveil before the stakeholders the investment opportunities in the tourism sector of Kerala, including hospitality, eco-tourism initiatives, adventure tourism, responsible tourism and sustainable tourism projects, the Minister said.Tourism Minister Riyas will preside over the opening session, which will be attended by officials from various departments and investors from India and abroad.
Besides, it will feature presentations and exhibitions highlighting various tourism investment opportunities across the state. Seminars and workshop sessions on tourism trends, project pitch sessions, roundtable discussions and B2B meetings are other highlights of the conclave.
Riyas further added that the state government has plenty of landed and physical assets at its disposal at locations of immense tourism possibilities all over Kerala, which need to be developed in a sustainable manner to turn the entire state into one of world’s prime all-weather experiential tourism hubs.
The identified sites include Swaar, Saurabh Van Vihar, Neugal Park, and Bir-Billing in the Palampur forest division, as well as Kasol, Kheer Ganga, and Sumarupa, among others. Each of these eco-tourism destinations will encompass an area of one hectare, ensuring their protection and sustainability. Furthermore, a reserve price has been established for these sites to facilitate their development and operation through outsourcing.
Noting that the highly transient nature of tourism in the present-day world calls for new strategies, the Minister said it is vital for Kerala to update, upgrade and reorient the vital sector to keep up with the current trends, demands and choices, by attracting more investment in promising locations and products.
Kerala Tourism will make a strategic stride from a strong foundation built over the last 25 years, based on a robust state-industry partnership. As per the state tourism department, ‘the ensuing Tourism Investors Meet will further deepen and broaden this collaboration, which has been the underpinning of Kerala’s success story as a viable tourism model,recognised and appreciated by stakeholders all over the world.’
Adding to this, Riyas said the new ideas, practices and products by investors need to be leveraged by means of joint ventures, public-private partnership (PPP) models and operational arrangements.
He added that a special facilitation centre will be set up at the Tourism Directorate in the state capital for providing services to investors and take forward their projects in the sector. “It will impact the state’s economy and create job opportunities apart from bringing a holistic change in the tourism sector,” he added.
Speaking during the pre-event launch, K Biju, Secretary of Tourism said the event is also an effort to increase tourism sector’s contribution to the state’s GDP from 10 per cent to 12 per cent. “The conclave is expected to yield substantial investment,” he said.
Tourism Director PB Nooh added that despite the pandemic and unrest in various parts of the world, more than 1.88 crore visitors including domestic as well as foreign tourists came to Kerala in 2022.
“The Tourism Investors Meet will set the stage for investors to familiarise themselves with various opportunities in Kerala. The land parcels owned by the Tourism as well as other departments will be showcased at the event,” informed Nooh.
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