ABSTRACT
Tourism is one of the fastest growing service industries and significantly contributes to the development of an economy. It creates employment opportunities for thousands, generates foreign exchange earnings and attracts investment both from local and international investors. Endowed with vast natural scenic spots and heritage, the government of Bangladesh has been trying to promote tourism and enacted a couple of policies to create a conducive environment for tourists. Unfortunately, the actual arrivals of foreign tourists and earnings are not at par, and rather are decreasing over the years. Hence, this chapter intends to evaluate current tourism conditions and tourism policies in Bangladesh. In so doing, secondary sources of data (e.g. government documents) are used, followed by a descriptive analysis to evaluate the tourism policies undertaken by the government of Bangladesh. The chapter observes that there is inadequate institutional capacity, coordination problems among various government agencies, lack of infrastructure and not-so-friendly visa policies that deter the growth of the tourism industry in Bangladesh. Hence, well-planned and well-executed tourism policies will not only increase international tourist arrivals but also contribute to the development of Bangladesh.
