State tourism minister Ampareen Lyngdoh and tourism secretary L. Kharkongor will visit Shanghai to showcase the hill state’s tourism potential at the meet.
With the Shillong Chamber Choir winning laurels in China during the choir Olympics recently, the Meghalaya capital has become increasingly familiar to the Chinese audience as well as international tourists.
Prior to her departure to Delhi today en route to China, Ampareen said with Shillong gaining popularity among tourists globally, the need of the hour was to attract more foreign tourists to the state by highlighting its potential. The world expo in Shanghai would provide an ideal platform towards this end, the tourism minister said.
While the inflow of domestic tourists has been steady with around five lakh visitors in the past five years, there were only 4,500 foreign tourists to Meghalaya from March this year till date.
According to the tourism minister, the state can earn more revenue provided there is a steady inflow of foreign tourists to the state.
“More foreign tourists will bring in more foreign exchange which will, in turn, improve the economy of the state,” she said.
“Besides, development in the tourism sector would also bring along better employment opportunities for the local youths,” Ampareen said.
The expo will also provide an opportunity to meet dignitaries and officials of various countries and share ideas, the minister said.
Meghalaya will have a small store in the Indian pavilion where the unique features of the state and the tourist destinations will be projected.
Ampareen brushed aside allegations from certain quarters that the foreign trip would be a wasteful expenditure.
“As far as my visit to China is concerned, this is exclusively to promote tourism so that in the long run Meghalaya will become a favourite destination for tourists,” she said.
According to Ampareen, the tourism meet in Shanghai will enable her to package the state, which is blessed with natural beauty after interacting with the officials of various countries.
“The visit to China should not be considered a joyride, but should be seen in the context of projecting the state before the international community,” she added.