DHAKA, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) -- The 13th Asian Tourism Fair (ATF) 2026 kicked off in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, on Thursday, bringing together hundreds of tourism-sector insiders from home and abroad.
More than 200 organizations from 10 countries, including China and Malaysia, are participating in the fair.
Bangladeshi Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M. Rashiduzzaman Millat inaugurated the three-day expo. "I believe the ATF is not merely a tourism exhibition. It is a platform for friendship, business, investment, cultural exchange and regional cooperation," he said.
Millat said Bangladesh's new policy on tourism will place strong emphasis on private investment and public-private partnerships.
"We want to raise the contribution of the tourism sector to GDP to 8-9 percent, which is now 2-3 percent," he said. "In our journey to build a new Bangladesh, I call on all of my fellow stakeholders to come up with innovative and cost-effective ideas to develop our tourism sector."
The event is being organized by a tourism magazine in Bangladesh, the Parjatan Bichitra, with the endorsement of the Bangladeshi Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism.
According to the organizer, the expo features business-to-business sessions, seminars, destination presentations, and product promotions for sector insiders across the region and beyond.
