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During the tourism season, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has established its appeal as an important tourism destination, with its lush and shadowy forests in the upper late and the calm valleys in Swat. In 2023, 16.9 million tourists visited, including 4,554 international visitors. Despite these encouraging data, there are important systemic challenges. According to Geo Local Analysis, 40 % of rural residents will have to travel more than 60 60 minutes to access basic health care. To unlock the KP’s full environmental tourism capacity and ensure sustainable, comprehensive development, it is very important to deal with such infrastructure gaps.
The KP environmental tourism economy is primarily concentrated with three separate passages. The Northern Circuit, which surrounds areas like Chitral and upper Dir, attracts tourists with individual cultural places such as Buddhist heritage marks and culturally rich Kalash Valley. Visitors highlight significant differences with the recording of upper DIR in 2023, while in more accessible areas like galts indicate widely unused capabilities than millions of people.
In the central mountainous areas of KP, including the Valley of Naran Kaghan, in 2023, more than 5 million visitors face severe weather pressure, the number is expected only in the future. The fruitful infrastructure tensions highlight the urgent need of better planning and sustainable management methods to prevent environmental degradation.
The southern valleys, including regions like Swat, including the famous Malm Jabba Sky’s home, contribute significantly to hosting about 3.5 3.54 million tourists annually in local GDP. Despite the economic success, environmental challenges such as garbage management and forest harvesting is permanent and its stability poses a serious threat.
The government did not close these challenges. Numerous steps such as KP Integrated Tourism Development Project, which have been funded by $ 70 million by World Bank Loan, have been implemented, simultaneously, UNDP has established solar powered pods and wastewater treatment systems with strong stability, with strong stability, with strong stability).
The planned infrastructure development for 2024-2027 includes significant investment in areas of integrated tourism such as Ganol (Manikal), Mankel (Swat) and Madakshesht (Chitral). The Asian Development Bank has helped invest $ 320 million to upgrade 900 km of flooding rural roads, promising to significantly reduce travel time.
Despite the government’s active measures, KP’s environmental tourism faces environmental challenges. In the glute, the daily waste production increases from 3.8 tonnes of off -season to 12.7 tonnes during the peak season, which greatly enhances local waste management capacity. Only 34 % of hotels have a thorough compliance with solid garbage management policies. Open dumping through the rest is a threat to natural water sources.
In addition, forest harvesting continues, especially in districts such as upper late and boner, where it is driven by unstable fuel wood demand. This results in significant disadvantages in the cover of the trees, and results in increased environmental collapse. Steps such as the construction of UNDP’s recycled plastic greenwood have begun to solve the pressure effectively, which has saved hundreds of adult trees. However, it needs mass scaling to have a meaningful effect on numbers.
Priority over environmental protection, KP can ensure that its destructive scenes become sustainable assets that provide long -term economic, environmental and social benefits.
Strategic measures for the immediate period (2024-2026) that tourist arrival are essential for KP. The implementation of dynamic pricing models can effectively disperse and distribute visitors, which can reduce environmental tension throughout the region and the stress of infrastructure on the region very often. In addition, the establishment of integrated regional waste management officials equipped with iOT-capable technologies will help significantly increase the environmental management by effectively monitoring and wasting waste.
KP also needs to measure eco -friendly housing solutions such as modular greenwood camping pods. These structures using sustainable methods will enhance tourist capacity and offer alternatives to traditional housing environmental awareness and appeal, which promote sustainable tourism development.
In the long-term (2027-2030), the KP government needs to develop the KP Eco Tourism Index, which will be a comprehensive diagnostic tool to connect environmental social and governance (ESG) matrix. This index can act as a standard for measurement of sustainable tourism progress and to guide policy towards both environmental integrity and social welfare. It can be included in the pre -created national tourism competitive index and enhances its efficacy.
Converting KP tourism infrastructure by 2030 to at least 60 % of renewable energy use is an important strategy for promoting long -term environmental stability. This goal can be understood through a multi -faceted approach.
First, taking advantage of KP’s solar capacity through the installation of photovoltaic systems in hotels, resorts and tourist centers can significantly reduce the dependence on non -renewable energy sources.
Secondly, the development of micro hydropower projects can help utilize the province’s sufficient water resources and provide clean energy to remote tourist destinations.
Third, the introduction of privileges for tourism businesses that adopts renewable energy solutions and obtain green certificates will increase the environmental credibility of both businesses and appeal to the growing class of environmental consciousness.
Fourth, co -operation between the government and the private sector can help invest in renewable projects designed for the tourism industry, for example the sustainable energy and economic development program is a key role in increasing public and private investment in the renewable energy sector of KP, which is a key to increasing public and private investment.
Finally, the inclusion of local communities in the implementation process ensures stability and local ownership. The first conversation with communities shows that there is a willingness to promote environmental tourism in the region. However, locals demand training programs that can equip the skills needed to maintain a renewable energy system.
The environmental tourism sector in KP is at a critical juncture. Improving infrastructure, social engagement and adherence to sustainable methods can transform the strategic, permanent investment P. into an ideal environmental tourism destination. Interaction with passionate local communities suggests that with the right help, KP forests can promote environmental tourism. In priority to environmental protection, KP will ensure that its destructive scenes become sustainable assets that provide long -term economic, environmental and social benefits.
Mobin Ali Khan, a economist, graduates from the University of Liverpool
