Special Correspondent
PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan has said that both the promotion of tourism and conservation of the natural environment in tourist destinations are the priority of areas of the provincial government adding that his government was not only focusing on creating employment opportunities by promoting tourism activities but also making concerted efforts at the same time to conserve the natural beauty of toursit spots by promoting Ecotourism in the province. He has futher said that “Travel Responsibly for Experiencing Ecotourism” (TREK) initiative of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government recently launched with the collaboration of Tourism Department, World Bank and Nestle Pakistan will prove to be a milestone in keeping the tourist resorts cleaner and restoring a balance between nature and tourism. It may be recalled here that the TREK initiative of the provincial government was formally launched by Prime Minister Imran khan the other day in Islamabad.
In statement issued here to this effect the Chief Minister has said that the TREK Initiative aims at inculcating the basic concept and importance of “Responsible Tourism” in tourists, local residents, private sector enterprises, local authorities and communities in tourist destinations adding that the initiative will support more awards, advocacy and actions focused on responsibile tourism. He termed the launching of the TREK initiative as a high need of the hour and said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has become the first province to launch such an important initiative wich would help a great deal to create a balance between nature and tourism by promting environment friendly and responsible tourism adding that besides conservation of the environment, the initiative will also help sustain the well being of the local people.
Mahmood Khan lauded the efforts of Tourism Department for launching the TREK initiative and expressed gratitude for the World Bank and Nestle Pakistan for their support in the intiative. He expressed the hope that all the partner organisations would give their best to achieve the set targets of make the initiative making it a real success.