【Summit Senior Figures Interview】Interview with Yam Prasad Basel, Officer and Focal Person of the Kathmandu City Office: Kathmandu Hopes the WTCF Can Bring the Policy Along With Good Projects and Programs to Upgrade and Promote Kathmandu’s Tourism Industr

On the morning of September 18th, on behalf of Mayor of Kathmandu, Mr. Yam Prasad Basel, Officer and Focal Person of the Kathmandu City Office, was interviewed by representatives of The Travel Channel and We-media of the WTCF. He introduced the travel resources of Kathmandu and expressed his expectation for the WTCF to promote the development of Kathmandu’s tourism industry.

Mr. Basel said, “Kathmandu is the capital and largest city in Nepal. It is also the gateway to the country as Kathmandu is a landlocked country. The city also has a glorious history dating back 2,000 years and it is very diverse in its culture and beliefs and many things as well. Also, the city has many UNESCO Heritage Sites including Boudhanath and Swayambhunath. Also, Thamel is a tourist destination where people can find many Nepalese food items and accessories. This area is very popular with foreigners.”

It is understood that the numbers of Chinese tourists traveling to Kathmandu has surpassed 100,000. The numbers are still increasing due to the convenience of transportation and more and more Nepal travel products are being developed. Faced with the increasing overseas tourists and concept of the Shared Economy, Mr. Basel said that Shared Economy is only a concept in Nepal now and hasn’t come to reality. Many common Nepalese people do not use the applications like Airbnb and Uber and Trip Advisor in their daily life. Advanced management methods will become a new tendency that guides the development of world tourism industry and Kathmandu will learn to balance the relationship between the traditional culture and modern tourism development.

On the occasion of the five anniversary of the establishment of the WTCF, Mr. Basel expressed his wishes and expectations of the future work that will be done by the WTCF. “I would like to express my sincere greetings and best wishes to the WTCF on the 5th anniversary. The World Tourism Cities Federation will achieve greater heights and in the days to come. On behalf of my city, on behalf of my mayor, I hope that if the WTCF brings the policy along with good projects and programs to upgrade and promote the least developed cities, just like Kathmandu and Nepal. That would be greatly appreciated.”