Tourism Minister plans to establish hospitality institutes in provinces

By A Staff Reporter Kathmandu, July 20: Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Jeevan Ram Shrestha has informed his plan to establish tourism and hotel management academies in all seven provinces. 

The Minister, who reached the office of the Nepal Academy Tourism and Hotel Management (NATHM) at Ravi Bhavan in Kathmandu on Tuesday to inquire about the various educational programmes and training being conducted by the institute, said that the services of the academy will be extended to all seven provinces of the country.

Stating that there is a need to prepare skilled manpower for the development and expansion of the tourism sector, he emphasised the need for expanding hotel management and hospitality education and training programmes. The NATHM is an institute run under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA). 

Minister Shrestha expressed his belief that the branches of the academy will be expanded and put into operation in all provinces and this will help in the development and expansion of tourism. 

According to him, the institute, which is the only government agency that provides education and training related to hotel management and hospitality, should provide quality technical education.

He said that branches of the foundation should be expanded in all provinces in order to produce skilled manpower required for the tourism industry, to advance high-level educational programmes, training and research programmes. 

In the last fiscal year, branch offices of the foundation have been established in Jhapa, Mahottari and Banke districts. On the occasion of his visit to the NATHM, Minister Shrestha took information about the physical infrastructure of the institution, the quality of education and the trainings being conducted.

More than 90 per cent of the human resources produced by the academy are employed. The institution has so far produced 57,572 skilled manpower and in the last financial year only about 1500 people have joined the educational programme at the academy.