Nepal is becoming a major tourism destination for Asian travellers, a local media reported Tuesday, citing a report.
The World Bank South Asia Economic Update 2010 reveals that travellers from East Asia made up 26.5 percent of the total tourist arrivals in Nepal, China's Xinhua news agency quoted The Kathmandu Post daily as saying.
The statistics of the Nepal Tourism Board, reflecting a similar trend, said the tourists arrivals from China, South Korea and Thailand have been increasing in the past few years.
The number of Chinese arrivals in Nepal has increased by 185.97 percent in from 2006 to 2009. Around 19,000 Chinese tourists visited Nepal in 2009.
In the same period, tourist arrivals from South Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia have soared by 68.40 percent, 164.26 percent, 83.48 percent and 46.32 percent, respectively.
Travel trade analysts attribute the increment in East Asian arrivals to their rising income levels, desire to visit the birthplace of the Buddha and better air connectivity.
Currently, four Chinese airlines operate flights to Nepal with China Eastern Airlines being the latest entrant last year.
The growth in inbound from East Asia has prompted the concerned stakeholders to pay special attention to the region.
Nepal is expecting 100,000 tourists from China during Nepal Tourism Year 2011 while it has targeted a 20 percent increment in tourist arrivals from other Asian countries.
Showing posts with label Nepal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nepal. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
13 countries meet in bid to save wild tigers -
HUA HIN, Thailand -- Efforts to save the wild tiger are at a critical point and it will take greater political will and cooperation from Asian countries to prevent the big cats from becoming extinct, conservationists and the World Bank warned Wednesday.
The dire message was offered to 13 tiger range states attending the first Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation. The aim of the three-day meeting is to convince countries to pledge to spend more on tiger conservation and set targets for boosting their numbers - vows that would then be finalized by heads of state in September at a meeting in Vladivostok, Russia.
"There will be no room left for tigers and other wildlife in Asia without a more responsible and sustainable program for economic growth and infrastructure," World Bank President Robert Zoellick said in a video message to the 180 delegates.
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"The tiger may be only one species, but the tigers' plight highlights the biodiversity crisis in Asia," he said.
Thailand's Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suwit Khunkitti told delegates the time had come for his fellow ministers to commit to "bold commitments and actions so that we can collectively turn the tide of extinction on the tiger."
Tiger numbers have plummeted because of human encroachment, the loss of more than nine-tenths of their habitat, and poaching to supply the vibrant trade in tiger parts. From an estimated 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century, the number today is less than 3,600.
John Seidensticker, head of conservation ecology at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and chairman of the Save the Tiger Fund, recalled how he watched the Javan and Bali tigers disappear in the 20th century, adding that "losing a tiger is like losing a very close, dear relative and I'm still saddened by that experience."
He said conservationists have over the years been successful in banning trade in tiger parts, outlawing hunting and boosting protection measures. But he said he and others never foresaw the breakneck economic development in Asia that would "pave over" key tiger forests and grasslands and create a market for tiger parts that has caused poaching to skyrocket.
Still, Seidensticker and others said the meeting itself offered hope, showing that the bid to save tigers has gone beyond passionate environmentalists and scientists and is now being embraced by government officials and key donors like the World Bank.
The meeting is being organized by Thailand and the Global Tiger Initiative, a coalition formed in 2008 by the World Bank, the Smithsonian Institute and nearly 40 conservation groups. It aims to double tiger numbers by 2022.
"That this meeting is happening is hugely important," said John Robinson, executive vice president of conservation and science for the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society.
Robinson said the political will to save the tigers must be strengthened, funding increased for impoverished countries where tigers remain and forests expanded to ensure that tigers and humans don't clash - a problem especially common in India and Indonesia.
Relocating communities is an option as long as the villagers are compensated adequately, Robinson said.
The World Bank said countries must work to minimize the impact of roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects on tiger habitat - something the bank has vowed to do in projects it funds. It also called on countries to better train and equip their forest rangers and reduce corruption in the government agencies tasked with running national parks and protected areas.
"Corruption has been rampant and all pervasive in some of the countries as far as forest management is concerned," said Keshav Varma, the Global Tiger Initiative's program director, told delegates. "Corruption is gradually and persistently nibbling away at our natural resources. The politics of money is drowning out the weak voices of the tiger and the poor."
The 13 countries attending the meeting are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.
The dire message was offered to 13 tiger range states attending the first Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation. The aim of the three-day meeting is to convince countries to pledge to spend more on tiger conservation and set targets for boosting their numbers - vows that would then be finalized by heads of state in September at a meeting in Vladivostok, Russia.
"There will be no room left for tigers and other wildlife in Asia without a more responsible and sustainable program for economic growth and infrastructure," World Bank President Robert Zoellick said in a video message to the 180 delegates.
ad_icon
Click here!
"The tiger may be only one species, but the tigers' plight highlights the biodiversity crisis in Asia," he said.
Thailand's Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suwit Khunkitti told delegates the time had come for his fellow ministers to commit to "bold commitments and actions so that we can collectively turn the tide of extinction on the tiger."
Tiger numbers have plummeted because of human encroachment, the loss of more than nine-tenths of their habitat, and poaching to supply the vibrant trade in tiger parts. From an estimated 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century, the number today is less than 3,600.
John Seidensticker, head of conservation ecology at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and chairman of the Save the Tiger Fund, recalled how he watched the Javan and Bali tigers disappear in the 20th century, adding that "losing a tiger is like losing a very close, dear relative and I'm still saddened by that experience."
He said conservationists have over the years been successful in banning trade in tiger parts, outlawing hunting and boosting protection measures. But he said he and others never foresaw the breakneck economic development in Asia that would "pave over" key tiger forests and grasslands and create a market for tiger parts that has caused poaching to skyrocket.
Still, Seidensticker and others said the meeting itself offered hope, showing that the bid to save tigers has gone beyond passionate environmentalists and scientists and is now being embraced by government officials and key donors like the World Bank.
The meeting is being organized by Thailand and the Global Tiger Initiative, a coalition formed in 2008 by the World Bank, the Smithsonian Institute and nearly 40 conservation groups. It aims to double tiger numbers by 2022.
"That this meeting is happening is hugely important," said John Robinson, executive vice president of conservation and science for the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society.
Robinson said the political will to save the tigers must be strengthened, funding increased for impoverished countries where tigers remain and forests expanded to ensure that tigers and humans don't clash - a problem especially common in India and Indonesia.
Relocating communities is an option as long as the villagers are compensated adequately, Robinson said.
The World Bank said countries must work to minimize the impact of roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects on tiger habitat - something the bank has vowed to do in projects it funds. It also called on countries to better train and equip their forest rangers and reduce corruption in the government agencies tasked with running national parks and protected areas.
"Corruption has been rampant and all pervasive in some of the countries as far as forest management is concerned," said Keshav Varma, the Global Tiger Initiative's program director, told delegates. "Corruption is gradually and persistently nibbling away at our natural resources. The politics of money is drowning out the weak voices of the tiger and the poor."
The 13 countries attending the meeting are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Hewlett-Packard extends music service to Southeast Asia
SINGAPORE - Hewlett-Packard (HP) is entering Southeast Asia's music download market through an expanded partnership with Universal Music.
The free service, which will be available in 18 countries across South and Southeast Asia from 28 November, gives HP customers access to Universal’s music library. The service allows 1,120 songs to be downloaded during a 12-month period, 120 of which can be downloaded for indefinite ownership. The rest will be available with a validity of one year.
The service will specifically be available in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and Thailand.
According to the company, this is the first music-service partnership between Universal Music and HP in Southeast Asia. “Consumers are increasingly streaming and storing their favourite music files on their PC,” said Dennis Mark, VP of marketing for HP Personal Systems Group for Asia-Pacific and Japan. “Our partnership with Universal Music will amplify consumers’ entertainment gratification and make their notebook a one-stop shop for all their multimedia needs.”
HP’s expansion into the sector mirrors similar services launched in the region to attract young consumers. This year, Nokia rolled out its Comes With Music platform in the region. Motorola’s MotoMusic, which enjoyed success in China after its 2006 debut but was slower to gain ground elsewhere in the region, also launched in Singapore last year. That service closed down in June.
HP initially launched this service in other Asia-Pacific markets last month.
The free service, which will be available in 18 countries across South and Southeast Asia from 28 November, gives HP customers access to Universal’s music library. The service allows 1,120 songs to be downloaded during a 12-month period, 120 of which can be downloaded for indefinite ownership. The rest will be available with a validity of one year.
The service will specifically be available in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and Thailand.
According to the company, this is the first music-service partnership between Universal Music and HP in Southeast Asia. “Consumers are increasingly streaming and storing their favourite music files on their PC,” said Dennis Mark, VP of marketing for HP Personal Systems Group for Asia-Pacific and Japan. “Our partnership with Universal Music will amplify consumers’ entertainment gratification and make their notebook a one-stop shop for all their multimedia needs.”
HP’s expansion into the sector mirrors similar services launched in the region to attract young consumers. This year, Nokia rolled out its Comes With Music platform in the region. Motorola’s MotoMusic, which enjoyed success in China after its 2006 debut but was slower to gain ground elsewhere in the region, also launched in Singapore last year. That service closed down in June.
HP initially launched this service in other Asia-Pacific markets last month.
Friday, December 12, 2008
South Asians Left Jobless, Homeless In Iraq
Tens of thousands of poor South Asians have made their way to Iraq since the U.S. invasion, in the hopes of making money to send home to support their families.
Dishwashers, cleaners, drivers and cooks from countries like Bangladesh, India and Nepal form part of an army of contractors that service America's expensive war.
But the system that gets them to Baghdad is riddled with corruption and exploitation, leaving some South Asians living in hovels, jobless and afraid.
Four months ago, Sushil Khadka, 26, left his wife, his two children and his home country of Nepal for Iraq.
"I'd dreamt of a good job, sending home my salary every month to feed my family, to send my children to school. That's why I came here. But that never happened. The opposite happened. It's terrible," he says.
Now Khadka sits in a hut made out of salvaged cardboard, huddled next to a chain-link fence in a dusty corner near Baghdad's international airport. Flies swarm around splattered bits of old food and dirty blankets.
"They made fools of us," he says. "Had we gotten work, it would've been alright but they took our money and ran away."
He sold the family jewelry — all they had in the world — to pay a recruiter in Nepal $5,000. He says the recruiter promised him a job working for American contractor KBR that would earn him $800 a month — a fortune in Nepal. The average income there is $340 a year.
But when he arrived in Iraq he was told there was no work, he says. The agent who was supposed to help him was arrested and the visa in Khadka's passport was ripped out. He was left to his own devices, scrounging around the airport to find shelter and food.
Khadka is not alone. The 40-or-so men who live with him in this makeshift camp tell similar tales.
Upendra Das, 17, sits on the floor chopping vegetables on a dirty plank of painted wood.
"We eat once a day. Sometimes we can't even do that," he says. "I've been here three months so far. To get here I borrowed from the village moneylender. They charge a lot of interest. I can't leave so I'm still waiting, hoping that I will get some work."
Another group of 1,000 South Asians have been held in a nearby warehouse for several months by KBR subcontractor Najlaa Catering Services, a company based in Kuwait. The men say they had their passports taken away and were confined in substandard conditions.
The U.S. military and KBR say they are investigating.
The U.S. State and Defense departments have issued contracting guidelines that are supposed to protect workers in Iraq.
"As in all things, in Iraq there is a policy in place but there is no one really there to enforce it," says investigative journalist T. Christian Miller, who works for Pro Publica and has written a book called Blood Money about the mismanagement of Iraq's reconstruction.
He says that the abuse of South Asian workers in Iraq is common.
"It's definitely a situation of exploitation. You are talking about the most vulnerable people in the world," Miller says. "The U.S. has contracted some of the most dangerous and dirties jobs to some of the poorest people in the world. At this point, five years into the war, there are no excuses for U.S. companies not to be aware of the issue of human trafficking or labor trafficking."
Back at the Baghdad airport, a representative from the International Organization of Migration (IOM) has just showed up offering the homeless South Asians free repatriation. The IOM heard about the men only 10 days ago.
The men crowd around as Thair Issan hands out forms for them to fill out if they want to go home. Issan says the men's plight is desperate.
"Those are victims," he says. "You see the conditions they're living in. It's a very big humanitarian crisis."
Bangladeshi Mohammad Nazrul Islam says he wants to stay here but he's been told he'll be jailed if he does.
"The Iraqi authorities say ... they will jail us if we stay. If we leave right now, it's OK. But we don't want to leave because we've all paid a lot of money to get here," he says.
Where will we find the money to pay off that debt? he asks desperately, adding that he wants to stay but no one will give him a job.
ed note: The scares of a War President.
Dishwashers, cleaners, drivers and cooks from countries like Bangladesh, India and Nepal form part of an army of contractors that service America's expensive war.
But the system that gets them to Baghdad is riddled with corruption and exploitation, leaving some South Asians living in hovels, jobless and afraid.
Four months ago, Sushil Khadka, 26, left his wife, his two children and his home country of Nepal for Iraq.
"I'd dreamt of a good job, sending home my salary every month to feed my family, to send my children to school. That's why I came here. But that never happened. The opposite happened. It's terrible," he says.
Now Khadka sits in a hut made out of salvaged cardboard, huddled next to a chain-link fence in a dusty corner near Baghdad's international airport. Flies swarm around splattered bits of old food and dirty blankets.
"They made fools of us," he says. "Had we gotten work, it would've been alright but they took our money and ran away."
He sold the family jewelry — all they had in the world — to pay a recruiter in Nepal $5,000. He says the recruiter promised him a job working for American contractor KBR that would earn him $800 a month — a fortune in Nepal. The average income there is $340 a year.
But when he arrived in Iraq he was told there was no work, he says. The agent who was supposed to help him was arrested and the visa in Khadka's passport was ripped out. He was left to his own devices, scrounging around the airport to find shelter and food.
Khadka is not alone. The 40-or-so men who live with him in this makeshift camp tell similar tales.
Upendra Das, 17, sits on the floor chopping vegetables on a dirty plank of painted wood.
"We eat once a day. Sometimes we can't even do that," he says. "I've been here three months so far. To get here I borrowed from the village moneylender. They charge a lot of interest. I can't leave so I'm still waiting, hoping that I will get some work."
Another group of 1,000 South Asians have been held in a nearby warehouse for several months by KBR subcontractor Najlaa Catering Services, a company based in Kuwait. The men say they had their passports taken away and were confined in substandard conditions.
The U.S. military and KBR say they are investigating.
The U.S. State and Defense departments have issued contracting guidelines that are supposed to protect workers in Iraq.
"As in all things, in Iraq there is a policy in place but there is no one really there to enforce it," says investigative journalist T. Christian Miller, who works for Pro Publica and has written a book called Blood Money about the mismanagement of Iraq's reconstruction.
He says that the abuse of South Asian workers in Iraq is common.
"It's definitely a situation of exploitation. You are talking about the most vulnerable people in the world," Miller says. "The U.S. has contracted some of the most dangerous and dirties jobs to some of the poorest people in the world. At this point, five years into the war, there are no excuses for U.S. companies not to be aware of the issue of human trafficking or labor trafficking."
Back at the Baghdad airport, a representative from the International Organization of Migration (IOM) has just showed up offering the homeless South Asians free repatriation. The IOM heard about the men only 10 days ago.
The men crowd around as Thair Issan hands out forms for them to fill out if they want to go home. Issan says the men's plight is desperate.
"Those are victims," he says. "You see the conditions they're living in. It's a very big humanitarian crisis."
Bangladeshi Mohammad Nazrul Islam says he wants to stay here but he's been told he'll be jailed if he does.
"The Iraqi authorities say ... they will jail us if we stay. If we leave right now, it's OK. But we don't want to leave because we've all paid a lot of money to get here," he says.
Where will we find the money to pay off that debt? he asks desperately, adding that he wants to stay but no one will give him a job.
ed note: The scares of a War President.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
First Vietnamese conquer Mount Everest
The Vietnamese flag was pitched on the summit of Mount Everest at 7.15am (Vietnam time), May 22. The world’s highest mountain was conquered by three Vietnamese men during the filming of a TV reality show named “Conquering Mount Everest 2008”.
Four boys to climb Mount Everest
From the left: Bui Van Ngoi, Nguyen Mau Linh and Phan Thanh Nhien
The three men, Bui Van Ngoi (24), Phan Thanh Nhien (23) and Nguyen Mau Linh (31), have become the first Vietnamese to reach the world’s roof.
The three Vietnamese mountain-climbers started to conquer Mount Everest at 9am, May 21, at the height of 7,925m. They planned to reach the peak after ten hours.
The first Vietnamese man to step foot on the peak of Mount Everest is Bui Van Ngoi, a student at Sports and Physical Training University 2.
The two others, Phan Thanh Nhien, who is also a student at Sports and Physical Training University 2, and Nguyen Mau Linh, a boxer, arrived at the peak two hours later than Ngoi.
There were four Vietnamese mountain-climbers participating in the adventure but on May 30, Le Ba Cong quit the race after two training courses at the first training camp (5,950m), and the second camp (6,500m). The three remaining climbers continued the third training course at the third camp (7,300m) before entering upon the final stage.
The three climbers were accompanied by an American cameraman and a Sherpa guide. They spent five hours passing Khumbu ice waterfall, which is considered the most dangerous stage of Mount Everest. They took three hours more to reach the second camp. After two nights at that camp, it took them 7 hours to ascend the ice hills to reach the third camp. Staying one night at the third camp, it took four hours more to reach the fourth camp (7,925m). At the height of 8,000m, where there is only about one-third as much oxygen as at sea level, is called the Death Zone.
Leaving the fourth camp at 9pm, May 21, after eight hours Vietnamese climbers reached the peak of Mount Everest. After one night at fourth camp, they returned to the ground this morning, March 23. They will arrive at the Everest base camp on May 25.
Mount Everest is the highest mountain on Earth, as measured by the height of its summit above sea level (8,848 metres or 29,029 feet). The mountain, which is part of the Himalaya range, is located on the border between Sagarmatha Zone, Nepal and China.
By the end of the 2007 climbing season, there had been 3,679 ascents to the summit by 2,436 individuals from over 20 countries and territories. There have been 210 deaths on the mountain, where conditions are so difficult that most corpses have been left where they fell; some are visible from standard climbing routes.
In 1921 a group of British explorers failed to conquer this mountain.
On May 29, 1953, Edmund Hillary (New Zealand) and Tenzing Norgay (Sherpa, Nepal), became the first to successfully reach the peak of Everest.
In 1975, Junko Tabei (Japan) became the first woman to stand on the peak of Everest.
In 2001, Erik Weihenmayer (the US) became the first blind person to reach the Everest peak.
In Southeast Asia, there have been only three female mountain climbers from the Philippines who conquered Mount Everest on May 17, 2007, Noelle Wenceslao, Karina Dayondon and Janet Belarmino.
(Source: Tuoi Tre, VNE)
Four boys to climb Mount Everest
From the left: Bui Van Ngoi, Nguyen Mau Linh and Phan Thanh Nhien
The three men, Bui Van Ngoi (24), Phan Thanh Nhien (23) and Nguyen Mau Linh (31), have become the first Vietnamese to reach the world’s roof.
The three Vietnamese mountain-climbers started to conquer Mount Everest at 9am, May 21, at the height of 7,925m. They planned to reach the peak after ten hours.
The first Vietnamese man to step foot on the peak of Mount Everest is Bui Van Ngoi, a student at Sports and Physical Training University 2.
The two others, Phan Thanh Nhien, who is also a student at Sports and Physical Training University 2, and Nguyen Mau Linh, a boxer, arrived at the peak two hours later than Ngoi.
There were four Vietnamese mountain-climbers participating in the adventure but on May 30, Le Ba Cong quit the race after two training courses at the first training camp (5,950m), and the second camp (6,500m). The three remaining climbers continued the third training course at the third camp (7,300m) before entering upon the final stage.
The three climbers were accompanied by an American cameraman and a Sherpa guide. They spent five hours passing Khumbu ice waterfall, which is considered the most dangerous stage of Mount Everest. They took three hours more to reach the second camp. After two nights at that camp, it took them 7 hours to ascend the ice hills to reach the third camp. Staying one night at the third camp, it took four hours more to reach the fourth camp (7,925m). At the height of 8,000m, where there is only about one-third as much oxygen as at sea level, is called the Death Zone.
Leaving the fourth camp at 9pm, May 21, after eight hours Vietnamese climbers reached the peak of Mount Everest. After one night at fourth camp, they returned to the ground this morning, March 23. They will arrive at the Everest base camp on May 25.
Mount Everest is the highest mountain on Earth, as measured by the height of its summit above sea level (8,848 metres or 29,029 feet). The mountain, which is part of the Himalaya range, is located on the border between Sagarmatha Zone, Nepal and China.
By the end of the 2007 climbing season, there had been 3,679 ascents to the summit by 2,436 individuals from over 20 countries and territories. There have been 210 deaths on the mountain, where conditions are so difficult that most corpses have been left where they fell; some are visible from standard climbing routes.
In 1921 a group of British explorers failed to conquer this mountain.
On May 29, 1953, Edmund Hillary (New Zealand) and Tenzing Norgay (Sherpa, Nepal), became the first to successfully reach the peak of Everest.
In 1975, Junko Tabei (Japan) became the first woman to stand on the peak of Everest.
In 2001, Erik Weihenmayer (the US) became the first blind person to reach the Everest peak.
In Southeast Asia, there have been only three female mountain climbers from the Philippines who conquered Mount Everest on May 17, 2007, Noelle Wenceslao, Karina Dayondon and Janet Belarmino.
(Source: Tuoi Tre, VNE)
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