Nepal made its first step to space entry with the official launch of its maiden telecommunication satellite project on March 12, 2019.

Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) has officially signed an agreement with a French aerospace manufacturer Thales Alenia Space for this joint venture project.

“The Nepal Telecommunications Authority and France-based Thales Alenia Space, a Joint Venture between Thales (67 %) and Leonardo (33 %), have signed today an agreement under which, Thales Alenia Space will build the national satellite telecommunication system for Nepal,” NTA said in an official release.

This agreement is in response to the ‘Letter of Intent’ signed between Nepal Minister for Communication & Information Technology Gokul Prasad Baskota and the Secretary of State to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, in Paris on March 5, 2019.

“Thales Alenia Space to support Nepal in its official entry into the space community,” NTA noted in its release.

Nepal is yet to name this very high-performance C/Ku Band satellite that is expected to be launched by 2022.

Nepal’s Maiden Telecom Satellite

The French partner has expressed its full-fledged commitment to supporting Nepal in its telecom satellite project.

“We believe the project will be a key asset to bridge the digital divide and a strong vector of economic growth. We are also thrilled to embark into this long-term cooperation with Nepal and support the country develop its space capabilities and services for the benefit of all its citizens,” Eric Imbert, Sales Vice-President of Thales Alenia Space, confirmed in a statement.

Speaking on the project, Baskota expressed hope that the project will ensure high-speed communication and internet facilities to Nepali citizens.

“To successfully compete with other countries, to give high speed internet to all our citizens and to be recognized regionally, we want Nepal to accelerate its pace on the way to digitization. Our National Satellite will help us jump into a better future,” Baskota added.

Elated at the partnership, Baskota stated that the partnership with Thales Alenia Space will Nepal become self-dependent and establish self-identity in space technology and to pace towards prosperity of digital Nepal.

 Launch by 2022

As per the release, the satellite will be positioned at the 123.3° E orbital slot reserved for Nepal by the International Tele-communications Union (ITU) based on the SpaceBus National Satellite System solution developed by Thales Alenia Space.

Upon implementation, the project will provide Nepal with high-speed internet facility along with advancements in specialty fields such as TV Broadcasting, telemedicine, e-learning, e-government, disaster management, Information Technology, agriculture, tourism, hydropower and other value-added services.

“The versatile communication services provided by the satellite are primarily targeted at reducing the digital divide, especially in the underserved rural areas,” NTA said in the release.

Hope the project would add to Nepal’s in its long-standing digital transformation and tech-savvy efforts.

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Down the line from past to present, world nations have been observing this special day marking the significance of tourism and its significance. Continuing the line, the world observed the World Tourism Day (WTD) 2018 on September 27, 2018.

Under the theme ‘Tourism and the Digital Transformation’, the 39^th World Tourism Day was celebrated around two hot trends of today’s world i.e. Digital Transformation and Innovation.

Tourism for Sustainable Development

WTD 2018 shed light on how advanced technologies can transform the global tourism industry, making it crucial for sustainable development across the world.

The 2018 theme stands out primarily because of the impact that the tourism industry has on cultural exchange, community empowerment, transportation, ecological burden and overall infrastructure development, globally.

While all the world nations have individually marked the day, the United Nations made it very encouraging by announcing the semi-finalists of its first-ever #UNWTO Tourism Startup Competition 2018, which aims to bring in a futuristic approach among global start-ups on ways to implementing innovative ideas to transform the travel & tourism industry.

See: How UNWTO Celebrated World Tourism Day 2018

World Tourism Day & Nepal

Tourism suits best for the Himalayan nation because of its core principle: Atithi Dewo Bhava in Sanskrit, which means treating the ‘Guest as a God’.

There are many nations with high tourism potential, but for Nepal, tourism is the heart that makes it unique in the world view!

Continuing the spirit, the country observed the #WorldTourismDay2018 on a grand scale with wide range of rallies, cultural programs and heritage walks across the country.

Marking the day, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) organized a special event in Kathmandu with officials from different tourism-related bodies.

These include officials from the Ministry, Nepal Tourism Board, along with various tourism entrepreneurs and representatives from tourism-related associations.

In his address at the event, the Tourism Minister Rabindra Adhikari said the Government of Nepal is committed to tourism development and would promote it further on a global scale.

“We have diversity in tourism destinations which need to be commercialized. We are committed to prioritizing digitization and promoting the country in international market,” said Adhikari.

Informing the populace about rapid developments such as the 2015 earthquake reconstruction activity and construction of new airports for connectivity, the Minister expressed hope that the country would definitely reach its 2 million tourist arrival target under its ambitious Visit Nepal Year 2020 initiative.

Authorities opined that the new airport underway at Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, will attract more number of tourists because of Lumbini’s high significance as one of the world  heritage sites and most-sought tourism destinations.

Besides, the country is hoping big on upgradation of the country’s only international airport, the Tribhuvan International Airport, and other infrastructure development across religious, cultural and natural tourism destinations such as Pokhara, Kathmandu and Lalitpur and various other adventure tourism destinations, among others for attracting a greater number of foreign tourists.

“Despite of so many limitations in the past, we have been receiving very encouraging growth in tourism. With the development of airports and infrastructures, we are quite confident that the tourists’ arrival will continue to grow up,” said Deepak Joshi, CEO of Nepal Tourism Board.

Also Read: Cultural Street Festival 2018 for the World Tourism Day 2018

Visit Nepal Year 2020, The Target Ahead

Nepal fulfilled its 2017 target of one million tourist arrivals with around 940,218 foreign tourist arrivals at the end of 2017. Continuing the pace, the country has already reached more than half of 2017’s tourist arrivals by the mid of 2018 itself, measured at 593,299 arrivals at the end of July 2018.

With regard to revenues, the country has seen a good jump in tourism revenues at USD 643 million in the last fiscal year that ended in mid-July, says Nepal Rastra Bank.

Let’s wait and watch what Nepal has to offer for the next World Tourism Day and towards 2020, the prestigious year for Nepal Tourism!

Highlights of World Tourism Day 2018 Celebrations in Nepal

1. Tourism Ministry Officials, Tourism Entrepreneurs of Nepal and other delegates at an event to mark the World Tourism Day 2018 in Kathmandu, Nepal on September 26, 2018.

2. Nepal Tourism Minister Rabindra Adhikari addressing the 39th World Tourism Day event in Kathmandu.

3. The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation of Nepal honored ‘Shashwat Dham’ as the best Tourist destination of Nepal.

4. Murma Village, Doramba and Rainaskot receive ‘Best Village Destinations for Tourists’ awards

You might also be interested in:

• Nepal, The Perfect Tourism Destination for an Unforgettable Holiday Experience
• Nepal Tourism Vs Exports: FY 2017-18 Review
• Tourism Expo Japan 2018 – Nepal Tourism Continues Neighbor-First Strategy!

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