10:57, 15 мая 2023, Bishkek - 24.kg news agency , Darya PODOLSKAYA
An international tourism exhibition-fair and the 2023 tourist season were opened in Cholpon-Ata city. The Ministry of Economy and Commerce of Kyrgyzstan reported.
According to the ministry, the ceremony took place at Rukh-Ordo Cultural Center in Cholpon-Ata.
In his welcoming speech, the Minister of Economy and Commerce Daniyar Amangeldiev noted that Kyrgyzstan is a country with great potential for tourism development with its history, nature and unique culture.
«As you know, tourism creates favorable conditions for the development of the economy, provides jobs, improves the living conditions of local residents. Therefore, we are taking many active steps to improve the image of the country, sustainable development of tourism and improve its infrastructure,» the minister said.
According to him, the tourism sector of Kyrgyzstan is developing at a dynamic pace and becomes one of the priority sectors of the country’s economy.
According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), global tourism recovered by 63 percent in 2022 compared to the time of the pandemic, and in 2022 the total number of tourists from countries included in the classification of the World Tourism Organization amounted to 6,912,557 people. This is three times more than in recent years.
It is planned to build 68 tourist recreation centers in the regions of the country, 21 recreation centers are being built, which are supposed to be put into operation in the current tourist season.
Location of the remaining 47 facilities has also been determined, and their construction will continue.
The investment project Mountain and Tourist Cluster Baitik Mountain Resort is being implemented in Alamedin district, which is located near the capital. It is expected that this will be one of the largest tourist areas in Central Asia.
Construction of an international sports complex in Tosor village, Issyk-Kul region, is underway. Last year, GO BUS launched and operates a comfortable tourist shuttle bus. There are positive reviews about this project.
Two local geoparks have been created in the republic (Madygen in Batken region, Teskei in Issyk-Kul region) and the next similar parks will be created in the near future. Currently, relevant work is being carried out to include Kyrgyz geoparks in the list of UNESCO Global Geoparks.
In addition, based on close cooperation with the Civil Aviation Agency to increase the number of flights of the low-cost airline Wizz Air Abu Dhabi and the Korean airline T’way Air, it is planned to open a flight Abu Dhabi — Bishkek — Abu Dhabi and Seoul from June 2023. The country currently operates 48 regular international flights to 33 destinations.