Preface

The tourism industry is one of the driving forces of economic growth and provides 1 in 11 jobs globally and hence contributing significantly to the global GDP. Due to the pandemic and travel restrictions, the global economy, especially the tourism industry, suffered a lot. Pakistan must work towards improving the tourism industry, which will not only create jobs but also boost its economy.

Pakistan is blessed to have tourist destinations that can help it to grow its economy. Tourism Insights is the initiative of the Centre for Labour Research to gather and record the tourism market data and present it in a report form. The purpose of the report ‘Pakistan Tourism Profile’ is to provide a comprehensive overview of the existing state of the tourism sector of Pakistan to benefit the tourism industry, including the governments, tourism operators, the hospitality industry, local communities, and tourists.

The report is based on the framework of the ‘Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021’ (TTDI) published by the World Economic Forum. The data is taken from different secondary sources such as the Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2021, Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) 2019, World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reports, World Bank reports, newspaper articles, Pakistan Economic Survey, etc.

The Centre for Labour Research and Tourism Insights co-produced the first edition of the Pakistan Tourism Profile in 2022. Special thanks are due to the team who have worked for months to produce this report. The team at the Centre for Labour Research; Tehmina Tahir, Shanza Sohail, and Tasmeena Tahir, have been involved in the drafting of this report under the guidance and supervision of Mian Athar Jameel. Mian Iftikhar Ahmad has reviewed the report and provided necessary feedback towards improving the information and data. Seemab Haider has designed the report.