The government is declaring the newly Great Himalaya Trail (GHT) as an official trekking trail of the Nepal Tourism Year (NTY) 2011 campaign.
An official of Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation on Friday told Republica that all technical works to this effect have been completed and that they were waiting for the cabinet´s approval.
“We have completed necessary groundwork. We are waiting for the cabinet to endorse it,” said Ranjan Krishna Aryal, joint secretary at MoTCA.
The government is also working on to put the complete trail - which spans 1,700 kilometers - in Global Positioning System (GPS).
“With the announcement of GHT as the official trail of the NTY 2011 campaign, the government will focus more on its promotion and development," Aryal said, adding that the government is planning to encourage private sector to invest in unreached areas of the trial by developing basic infrastructure.
The 150-day was unveiled during the inaugural ceremony of NTY 2011 in mid- January. Along with GHT, the government had also unveiled Mighty East, Wild West Triangle and Tarai Tourism.
GHT - the longest and highest trekking trail in the world - extends from Darchula in the far-west to Taplejung in the east.
SNV - the Netherlands Development Organization -- that initiated the GHT development program is implementing pilot projects in Dolpa and Humla districts with the objective of developing micro and small to medium enterprises along the trail. “The project will be replicated in three districts soon," said Linda Bezemer, tourism product development advisor at SNV.
“We are also working on to build institutional capacity at central and district levels to plan and manage tourism development.”
SNV is providing training to locals on lodge management, guide services and cooking, among others. It is hopeful that the development and promotion of GHT will help in bringing more visitors to Nepal.
“While working on this project, we are focusing on the slogan ´Nepal: Once is not enough," said Mim Hamal, value chain development advisor at SNV, said. He further said the GHT would encourage visitors to come back again, as one cannot usually finish the trail at one go.
As of now, Annapurna, Everest and Langtang have remained Nepal´s major trekking regions. Statistics show, 26 percent of the country´s total visitors enjoyed trekking in 2009 and more than 86 percent of them visited these three geographical areas. SNV officials said the promotion of GHT would help to divert trekkers to other parts of the country as well.
Bachchu Narayan Shrestha, first vice-president of Trekking Agencies´ Association of Nepal (TAAN), said his association was working closely with the MoTCA, Nepal Tourism Board and SNV for the promotion of GHT. Shrestha, who is also running World Records Expedition and Treks, told Republica that he was getting positive response about the trail for the upcoming season.
