Tourism industry is one of the major sources of foreign exchange and revenue for Nepal, contributing significantly to the economy. It’s a key sector, particularly for local livelihoods and regional development. Nepal’s natural beauty, including the Himalayas and diverse ecosystems, along with its rich culture and history, attract a growing number of tourists.
Nepal’s tourism sector witnessed a remarkable resurgence in international visitor arrivals in 2024, with a notable increase in the number of international visitors to the Himalayan nation.
According to Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), Nepal welcomed over 1.147 million tourists in 2024, marking a significant recovery and growth of nearly 13.1 per cent compared to the previous year. It is also to note that a total of 1,014,882 foreign tourists visited Nepal in 2023.
Nepal is hopeful to receive 2,98,558 tourists in 2025. So as the industry is at an upward trend.
Certain causes can damage tourism industry so as country like Nepal hit badly. The pandemic is one of such reason to highly influence the industry. The pandemic of COViD-19 is just over and the industry in Nepal is taking a good speed.
The recent air pollution situation in Nepal, especially the Kathmandu Valley has created havoc. The air quality turned unhealthy to breath, health risk raised, air transportation had been influenced due to invisibility and so on.
The situation prompted tourism professionals, experts and entrepreneurs. Thus the stakeholders gathered for the solutions to churn out. Measures and actions to be taken if the natural settling of air pollution by seasonal rain contribute positively or nominally.
In this crucial situation, an interaction was organized with the title “Impact of Air Pollution in Tourism” in Kathmandu on 12th April. The event was organized jointly by Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) and the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB).
On the occasion, stakeholders have said that the tourism sector is being affected due to air pollution. They complain that tourists visiting Nepal are shortening and cancelling their travel schedules due to high risk of air pollution.
Speakers at an interaction said that the tourism industry has been affected by Kathmandu being listed among the world’s most polluted cities.
They say that the negative impact on the tourism industry is increasing as air flights are not regular due to pollution, various health problems arise, and tourists who arrive in Nepal are disappointed because they are not able to view the mountain ranges.
Addressing the programme, Deepak Raj Joshi, chief executive officer of NTB said, “The tourism industry is the only one that is contributing to the green economy, but the risk of Nepal’s beautiful image being tarnished due to pollution has increased.” He said that despite the fact that the tourism sector contributes significantly to Nepal’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), this sector has not yet been prioritised.
Explaining that Nepal’s tourism sector has provided direct and indirect employment to more than one million people, Joshi said, “To further benefit from the tourism sector, we should focus on reducing activities that pose risks of climate change, environmental pollution, and other factors that affect the tourism sector, and on policy reforms.”
“The tourism industry contributes to green economy,” he said, adding that the tourism’s sector however borne the brunt of air pollution. He sought the policy intervention from the government level to prevent the causes of pollution. He called on the private sector and the stakeholders concerned to focus on the development of tourism sector.
Air pollution will reduce tourist traffic in the short term, but if such problem take place every year, it will create a long-term impact on the tourism sector, Joshi added.
Other speakers at the programme opined that the cleaner and healthier the environment, the tourism sector will turn more sustainable and reliable.
Thakur Raj Pandey, senior vice president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), said, “The tourism sector has also benefited from Nepal’s effective and efficient weather information system, but this sector (tourism sector) is being affected by pollution.” He argued that forest fire control and pollution prevention would be ineffective unless each local level took effective measures. ”Mountains suffer snow melting. The rising air pollution has affected the country’s image as the world tourist destination,” he said. Combined efforts are needed to alleviate pollution, he added.
According to air quality expert Dr. Bhupendra Das, interstate air, agriculture, industry/factories, open burning of garbage, forest fires, and old vehicles are the main causes of pollution in Nepal.
“Studies have shown that more than 90 percent of pollution in Nepal comes from the Terai, 6.5 percent from the mid-hills, and about 3 percent from the Himalayan region,” he said. “Human activity is the main reason for the increase in pollution.” Das said that forest fires have become the main cause in the past few years. Dr. Das who has long engaged in a campaign for preventing air pollution said the entire world has been marred by the toxic air.
According to experts, more than 90 percent of the air during the dry season is not conducive to human health. Approximately 47,000 people die annually in Nepal due to unhealthy air. The Ministry of Health and Population has been reporting that the number of patients in hospitals has been increasing over the past two weeks as the air quality index (AQI) has reached a level that is dangerous for human health in many parts of the country, including Kathmandu.
Forest fires, burning of waste materials, smokes from vehicles, the construction sites and industries/factories are the air pollutants, he said, adding that such nasty air leaves a long-term impact on tourism industry.
President of NEFEJ Chandra Shekhar Karki, Bishnu Pandey, secretary of Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA), Chakra Karki, tourism entrepreneur, senior meteorologist at the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, Dr. Indira Kandel, and others expressed the view that only clean air can expand Nepal’s tourism industry.
According to meteorologist Kandel, the role of rainfall during winter and pre-monsoon periods remains important in reducing pollution. “The rain-making system is an external weather effect,” she said, “but various measures can be implemented internally to reduce pollution.”
