Introduction
Achieving competitive advantages from an industry like tourism can possibly be the prime concern for a country like Bangladesh. In this regard, an effective, accountable and timely structure of tourism administration is very well deserved. However, unlike many other relevant industries, ensuring a good tourism administration relies on many different factors including the political commitment and organizational set up. Bangladesh is endowed with numerous resources availability for tourism development but the lack of appropriate administration seems acute resulting to less investments and a comprehensive development framework. The country has public tourism organisations but yet to have the rules, regulations and strategic planning as required for administration . Administrations needs to create a congenial balance between tourism product or service offers and the consumptions of these offers by the tourists. Understanding the present tourism administration in Bangladesh, this conceptual research thus aims to critically outline the tourism administration in Bangladesh.
A Limited Research Periphery of Tourism Administration
Tourism administration is somehow different from general administration features turning it into a scholarly research area. Tourism administration is a multi-disciplinary area that prepares and administers people with same interests, experiences and training of the administrators for accommodations, food, travelling and relevant (World Tourism Organization 2019). The meaning of general administration is referred to the specific group of individuals those stay as in charge to enforce and create rules and regulations, or even those individuals in the leadership positions as responsible for completing essential jobs. General administration becomes operational from the very supreme authority that is the state leader. An administrator is rather a multi-tasked person working with teams, overseeing administrative responsibilities, coordinating with responsible agencies, engaging in planning on the basis of present demands. The process of administration can also be complex that is to administer and coordinate different stakeholders (Bec et al. 2019). Thus, tourism administration in the simplest meaning is the over sighting of all relevant activities attached to the tourism and relevant industries.
There are a good number of research studies that covered tourism management from diverse contexts (Inkson and Minnaert 2012). However, research studies in tourism administration are relatively few that attempted to explore and define the connotative features and categories of public service led tourism administration from the views of service clients, characteristics and attributes (Iona 2013). Tourism administration supported by the public services is required to be outlined systematically and comprehensively following their attributes, the composition of contents and existing benefit patterns relied scopes and differentiation of demands. Thus, tourism administration is required to be offered a conceptual base for administrative department’s decision-making to meet the demands of the tourism industry.
Tourism Administration Is Not Tourism Management
In general meaning, tourism administration and tourism management appears as synonymous. However, tourism administration is slightly different from tourism management in a way when, the latter is termed as the oversight of every activity attached to the travel and tourism industry. Tourism administration as defined is a legal and regulatory framework for tourism. This is a conceptual organisation of the government that affirms proper tourism administration in a specific area, region or nation. Manpower planning in tourism administration is important.
There are a number of ways through which tourism administration asserts on tourism management. World Tourism Organization (2019) has clearly clarified the scopes of tourism administration as:
First, technical product category. This category includes different tourism products that are offered to tourists. Second, quality standards in tourism services that means the improvement of overall product and service quality in the tourism industry (i.e. tourism related restaurants, accommodation, tour operators, tour guides and other relevant tourism focused service providers). This stage also involves raising the demand levels nationally, regionally and internationally; and to offer reliable and valuable information on quality standards both for the tourism and travel industry. Third, tourism administration is involved in statistical development and strengthening of a Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) for ensuring statistics and quality standards. Fourth, tourism administration is concerned with developing technical product category. This stage facilitates the understanding of the complete economic and social dimension of tourism on the basis of demand (i.e. domestic and international arrivals, features of their visitation, goods and services consumption) and supply (features of the local tourism enterprises engaged in tourism followed by their production, labour and capital use details). From this context, the guidance of tourism policy and planning by offering a beneficial lobbying tool to the national tourism administrators for advocating the cause of tourism. Also, from the base of destination management organisations and the provincial governments, national tourism administration is attached to a consistent, competitive and valid source of tourism statistics followed by both social and economic data that include tourism generated employment information. In this regard, national tourism administrators are meant to build better capacities of the statisticians, bankers and immigration authorities for collecting and processing tourism-related statistics.
Product development , diversification, marketing and promotion are important. Increasing the country’s tourism industry competitiveness by the evaluation of scope and diversity of the present and potential tourism resources are enforced. Offering guidelines to converse them to quality tourism products on the basis on researching present and future market trends are encouraged and to address the national and regional product similarity challenges and lack of product diversification with the ultimate intention to increase tourist arrivals (i.e. repeat visitors), increasing their stay length and thus to spread the economic advantages to tourism to allover the country is essential. National tourism administration relates destination management organisations to local communities, provincial governments and private sector. Potential products are generally identified for facilitating diversification.
Plan supported by product development , marketing and promotion renders importance. The formulation of an explanatory marketing and promotional plan for the tourism industry needs to take into account both the quantity and quality of tourism products; domestic, regional and international source market diversity, branding, image and positioning, promotional materials’ quality and distribution (i.e. e-marketing) and the institutional marketing and promotional mechanisms (i.e. public-private partnership). Thus, this stage is outlined that strategic positioning of a specific country as the tourism destination , the identification of tourist patterns and source market priority and segments render importance. Strategic positioning of the country as a tourism destination and identification of tourist patterns and priority source markets and segments.
Capacity building programmes in tourism development and management on the ground of human resource development offers intensive training in diverse disciplines that include the development , management and promotion of tourism. The government officials’ improved capacities at the local and national level as well as developing, managing and promoting tourism by the community members become beneficial for national tourism administration .
Value Chain Analysis and local economic development are viewed as policy planning and economic development in the national tourism administration . Investigating the tourism industry’s structure and working of the value chain in a destination and the generated economic value, the local economic impact enhancement plan and execution generally help. Tourist destinations that are concerned with the alleviation of poverty, very particular attention needs to be paid for analysing the income amount from all transactions in the tourism industry as received by the poor. This is also essential to identify the most beneficial transactions for the pro-poor or that have the capacity to be created more pro-poor. The value chain analysis outlines an action plan that intervenes for enhancing the local economic impacts from tourism in a specific destination particularly interventions that secures a crucial increase in the income flow and opportunities to the poor. Creating a tourism value chain and strengthening the local stakeholder capacity in the tourism industry for planning and managing interventions for enhancing the local economic impact from tourism in the destination is also essential for national tourism administrators.
Strengthening the institutions and creating partnerships of the public-private sector needs proper attention on the ground of policy planning and economic development . The identification and clarification of the current and future roles of both private and public sector organization to develop tourism in the country and making operational improvements of tourism associations and tourism boards are all important. Improving the institutional framework for tourism development in the country and a public-private participatory model for policy and decision making processes to develop, manage and promote tourism can benefit national tourism administrators.
Manpower planning for the tourism industry on the ground of human resources development is advantageous. Manpower planning for the tourism sector. That is a well-structured manpower plan supported by improved capacities for HRD management, strengthened training and education facilities; and establishing an accreditation and quality standardisation system. Building up well-trained and highly qualified human resources both in the public and private sectors for developing, managing and serving the tourism industry in a sustainable and competitive way following the international standards are the basic outputs of national tourism administrators.
Tourism legislation and regulation as policy planning and economic development benefit the tourism industry. Formulating a regulatory and legal framework for the sustainable development and management of tourism, the conservation and protection of natural and cultural resources; as well as the involvement of private sector and local communities in tourism development activities facilitation are all beneficial. This reflects the responsibilities and roles of all stakeholders and ensures the both the local and international tourists’ rights; and affirms the obligations and rights of participating businesses, outbound and in-bound tour operators and many other concerned players in the tourism industry. A well-defined and logical regulatory and legal framework is much sought after for national tourism administration .
Tourism administration is involved in the preparation of tourism administrators to work practically to get indulged into recreational enterprises. Tourism administrators can simultaneously work as leisure organisers as well as tour guides those can apply tourism and recreational resources and make leisure and recreational philosophy popular. Tourism administrators can explain the actual meaning of tourism or tourism structure, recreation or leisure, historical development and the general philosophical concepts, theories and ideologies. Tourism administrators can also take part in restaurant, resort or destination management, events management, marketing and operations. Tourism administrators are also familiar with management concepts, basic or fundamental principles followed by analytical procedures that tourism or hospitality professionals are required to know.
Page (2014) argues that tourism managers normally spread in wider fields that involve many opportunities. Tourism management is a multidisciplinary discipline that prepares individuals with the training, experiences, and interests in management position in areas as food, accommodations and tourism. Tourism managers are also become involved in associations, public and enterprise authorities that are responsible for tourism services marketing to tourists. Tourism management collectively covers three areas as: first, business administration functions as finance, marketing and human resources; second, topics relevant to the tourism industry as travel motivations, environmental factors and tourism organisations; third, management theories and principles (Woodside and Martin 2008).
There are very few specific points on which tourism administration can be differed from tourism management. Tourism administration is regulatory and legal framework for tourism with the presence of local communities, destination management organisations, national tourism administration and private sector. In brief, tourism administration is responsible to administer tourism of an area, a region or a country in proper and effective ways.
On the other side, tourism management is mostly education generated for carrying out management operations of tourism (Page 2014). There are several ways to learn the management of tourism but mostly from academic knowledge. Tourism managers concentrates on the basics of general tourism business that covers social competence and cross cultural as well as professional and leadership competence (Inkson and Minnaert 2012).
Woodside and Martin (2008)explains that international tourism management mainly focuses with regard to contents consist of business basics with a tourism covering, cross cultural and social competence as well as leadership- and professional competence. However, from the very basic ground, tourism administration and tourism management is characteristically similar as generic business management but principally focused on restaurants and hotels (Beech and Chadwick 2005).
Tourism Administrators and Tourism Administration
Bhatia (2001) opines that tourism administrators can also be involved in the hospitality industry in order to continue a career development programme. The career focused objectives of the hospitality industry can possibly be influenced by relevant experiences of the tourism administration . Tourism administrators need to be aware of about the advanced studies about the operation of tourism enterprises, how tourism performs, tourist behavior as well as the patterns through which tourists can affect a destination . Tourism administrators need to have in-depth context about the tourism industry. They tend to be well informed about the way tourism industry functions, the way it has evolved and the way it develops.
According to World Tourism Organization (2019), tourism administrators are tourism trainers, managers, sales officers, commercial managers, travel and tour managers, relationship managers, business development representatives and tour management executives at the same time. Tourism administrators are accomplished to run establishments as resorts, hotels, and campgrounds. These administrators can also be placed in companies with specialties in road, sea, and railway transportation as well as airlines.
Tourism administrators normally have knowledge in tourism and travel supported by the enrollment in tourism and hospitality managed opportunities. In the area of tourism administration by the public services, the capacity to coordinate significantly can play a major role. European Commission (2019) suggests that tourism administration can also be allured by better benefits and higher remuneration packages depending on the administration qualities, leadership and relevant. Tourism administration in common need to have a good number of qualities that includes:
Mission commitment, where the excitements passes on from leadership to the grassroots level. Fellow beneficiaries of the employees can then be mirrored from that feeling. In the time of crisis, a good tourism administration stays closer to the fellow beneficiaries in order to remind them the purpose of their mission.
Strategic vision is important. Tourism administrator needs to remain focused on the strategic vision followed by the long term mission of the concerned tourism industry. This is very common that fellow beneficiaries and stakeholders can be narrowly obsessed from their daily activities. However, the vision of a good tourism administrator always stays on the longer time period covering for years. This is essential to keep in mind that the tourism industry existed even before the existence of the administrators as well as will also remain in operation after the administrators leave. Thus, the strategic vision of the administrators is a key tool for success.
Conceptual skill of the business administrator is vital when the essential aspect of the executive process stays as sensing the tourism industry comprehensively and of course of the entire situation relevant to this. The meaning remains clear and straightforward at this stage that tourism administrators needs to be able to view any decision or action that can affect any part of the tourism industry. Fellow beneficiaries can merely observe the industry but the good tourism administrator can view beyond any limitation.
Attention to detail is relevant for tourism administrators as this can offer a wider scenario and allow them to think strategically. This is equally essential for good tourism administrators to stay closer to the details. However, this cannot be like they are involved in all decisions that are minor or misjudge subordinates’ decisions. Tourism administrators need to be aware of the performances and activities of the beneficiaries and stakeholders to allow them the maximum possible autonomy.
Delegation works can create a fine line between tasks delegation to fellow beneficiaries and responsibility shrinking that the fellow beneficiaries are well-prepared for taking responsibilities. Good tourism administrators have the capacities for navigating such differentiation by pointing and assigning due responsibilities. These administrators influence the decision making and implementation patterns. The delegation of tasks and responsibilities in such regard affects fellow beneficiaries to flourish in their effective roles to develop and promote tourism as well as preparing the future leadership systems.
Growing talent is the other important aspect of tourism administration . The promotion of tourism administrators internally can save efforts and explore possibilities that lay inside each tourism administrator. Tourism administrator needs to be able to search for good talents within the tourism organisations, nurture them and place them in the most suitable position to make a success. Tourism administrators need to remain cautious about the talent exercise as their positioning is highly sensitive for tourism administration success.
Hiring savvy renders usability. Tourism administrators in the public service keep the intention to turn the tourism industry a better rewarding industry. However, in many cases, their skill, desire and situation do not align on a straight position that create abnormality. Tourism administrators in the public place need to set the relevant tourism organisations up for success from the very initial stage by patronizing and placing the right talent in the right place in the right time. A good tourism administrator has the ability for taking measured risks knowing that their decisions can remain unimplemented if the fellow beneficiaries remain unwilling to contribute.
Balancing the emotions for tourism administrators is good. Tourism administrators can experience harsh or extreme situations but these situations are overcome and harnessed by the good tourism administrators. Positive tourism administrators transform ill emotions that appear in the form of anger, rage or anxiety into happiness and peace as the driver of changes. A good tourism administrator applies emotions as an element to execute good decisions as beneficial for the tourism industry.
Creativity is an effective tool of a good tourism administrator. In most cases, tourism administrators have to work with a tight and uncomfortable budgetary allocation having some troublesome, difficult and almost impossible objectives to implement. These comprehensively create a type of challenge to administer tourism to cope with the challenges and to withdraw the restrictions for showcasing their creativity. Tourism administrators can become able to solve issues with their creativity and unique thought deliveries followed by the innovative approach and new context of solution.
Digital Communication Experience sharing is the most recent phenomenon of a tourism administrator. Tools of the digital communication platform as video streaming, email with the support of social media have become the cornerstones of the present day communication. Tourism administrators are commonly responsible for towards the beneficiaries and stakeholders while enjoying freedom for determining and settling the ground and timeframe of communication. Tourism administrators generally are beholden to the fellow beneficiaries and stakeholders those remain as the subject of accountability due to their actions or deeds. As a result, a successful tourism administrator presents and exhibit excellent skills to communicate on the digital electronic platform particularly through social media. Tourism administrators in the public sector prefer to choose their profession mainly for their dedication and service desire to do something good to the country. Tourism administrators in the public sector with their good deeds and activities can turn the tourism industry of a country into a success.
Institutionalisation of Tourism Administration
In any country, tourism administration is an obvious feature of the tourism industry. This type administration is oriented to administer both the public and private tourism enterprises and establishments. The characteristics and features of tourism administration is designed to have immense and definite effects on both of these. Tourism administration thus can be rendered as the regulation and control of tourism and relevant activities in a country. The administration of tourism can be described as the directives of the government and executed by the relevant agencies. Tourism administration is almost cases have effects on the local and national level tourism. Thus, these enterprises and organisations both operate and develop within a given framework as beneficial for the relevant stakeholders. Tourism administration sometimes can be influenced by the private tourism entrepreneurs and beneficiary’s opinions and this is rather important to incorporate their opinions as they are under the direct effects of tourism administration of a country. Tourism administration that has the representation of both public and private entrepreneurs is believed as having more affectivity and engagements. This is essential to get close proximity with the state level administration to avoid any maladjustments. For adopting the relatively newer situation of tourism development, this is essential and important work to improve and strengthen tourism administration with the involvement of public service. This service is an unavoidable feature for developing tourism administration at all possible levels.
According to Bhatia (2001), there are different institutions attached to the administration of tourism. The Ministerial level, the National Tourism Organisation level as well as the field level organisations are involved in the collective patterns of tourism administration in a country. Thus, the institutions need to be administered with skills and expertise.
Tourism administration generally begins from the very supreme level of the government represented by the state leader. The guidance and directions from the supreme authority thus passed on the ministerial level for further directives. Tourism administration then follows the bureaucratic comprehension for further rectifying or revising the administrative procedures. At this stage, all directives in common are turned into legislations and rules to be obeyed and implemented by the relevant institutions. Tourism administration in this way mostly circles the governmental bodies ranging from the ministry to the national tourism organisation. The rules that are set as legislations are thus made essential for the relevant tourism organisations to follow and execute.
Tourism Administration : The Bangladesh Perspective
Rahman et al. (2010) share their opinions on the sustainable nature of tourism administration in Bangladesh when the Government of Bangladesh is yet to take effective initiative, seriously. BPC and BTB under MOCAT can play a very important parts in such administration but the lack of effective administrator at national, regional and local levels descend this industry towards uncertainty and doubt. The Government of Bangladesh requires strong policy support to administer the potentiality of this industry. The National Tourism Policy 2010 is a formality when this lacks guidelines to build a tourism friendly administration . Both the administrators and general tourists need to be motivated to ensure administrative framework that is rather sustainable for the future generation of Bangladesh. Tourism policy administrators need to be well aware about the inadequate infrastructure, lack of convenient transportation and Master Plan, political will and the existence of corruptions in the country to deal with. The Government of Bangladesh is required to prepare a proper guideline to ensure the monitoring of TOAB on all travel agencies and relevant tourism products and service providers. They should follow Strategic Master Plan by WTO to ensure the sustainability in tourism administration to balance the present and future tourist demands.
With an aim to identify several issues of tourism administration in Bangladesh, Alauddin et al. (2014) suggest that the Government of Bangladesh need to focus on capacity improvements of the relevant administrative organisations. Both the national tourist organisations as BPC and BTB need to be more effective, diversified and independent in case of decision making for a better administration . Training and expertise development facilities for the tourism administrators and all tourism industry professionals need to be updated in the light of both domestic and global demands. As the needs of tourists are changing, tourism administrators need to be able to ensure that tourists can get their requirements. In this regard, the development of new rules and regulations, proper marketing tools, and useful tourism communications can help. The tourism administrators in Bangladesh also need to have enforcement powers in line with the national security agencies and especially with the “Tourist Police”.
According to the notable researchers, the National Tourism Policy 2010 of Bangladesh requires reformation and modification (Hassan and Kokkranikal 2018; Hassan and Burns 2014; Roy and Roy 2015). Good administration to develop eco-friendly, sustainable and community supportive is essential. The Government of Bangladesh is somehow offers policy supports for a better tourism administration . In the most recent times, act on protected areas of tourism and special tourism zone, the Cox’s Bazar Development Authority (CDA) are passed by the Government of Bangladesh. Tourism is a promising industry across the world and many countries are capitalising this industry. Still, Bangladesh is yet not get enough from this industry mainly suffering from the inappropriate tourism administration . The Government of Bangladesh creates different tourism administrative institutions (i.e. BPC , BTB , NHTTI) to develop this industry. However in practice, this industry faces different barriers to attract investments, high spending foreign and domestic tourists. The Government needs to take proactive measures to create and maintain a good tourism administration .
Dhaka Tribune (2018) with both their administrative and management experiences in public relations in BPC assert that this authoritative organization is literally is not well prepared to extend its full cooperation to any private and public entrepreneurs. These tourism industry professionals inform that the TOAB members get 25% discounts for any service of BPC that actually encourages private entrepreneurs in terms of knowledge acquiring, administering, and capacity building. BPC has already built the country’s very first edu-entertainment park named “Dino Park” in Cumilla that becomes an attraction of general tourists, researchers and students. BPC provides different training courses and facilities for both the entrants and existing tourism human resources and promotes packages tours for school students to historic sites in the country. BPC also works in different tourist attractions including Foy’s Lake in Chittagong as an example of sustainability administration .
New Age (2018) critically explains the significance of the “World Tourism Day” celebrated on the 27th September every year. With a new theme each year, this day can resemble the administration of tourism aimed for the well-being of general tourists. WTO also advises its member countries to observe this day to raise awareness among all the potential stakeholders. BPC , BTB and Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of Dhaka and other private and public organizations promote this day every year by holding different programs that can be an initiative to create awareness for a better tourism administration in the country.
Conclusion
This chapter reviews several literature studies that establishes that the present tourism administration in Bangladesh is rather unsatisfactory. This chapter argues that tourism administration and tourism management in practice has distinct features where the tourism administrators need to have specific attributes and qualities. The findings clearly states that the comprehensive development of the tourism industry in Bangladesh is subject to effective and useful tourism administration and management. Bangladesh also has a weaker organizational capacities for tourism administration when international organisations as WTO emphasizes on offering more importance on tourism administration . These organisations mostly work independently that narrows the opportunities to leave immense impacts for better administration . Thus, administration in the tourism industry as a whole lacks physical planning, strategy, rules and regulations. Even the availability of relevant information is limited findings of this chapter at least outlines the real scenario the present tourism industry in Bangladesh. This chapter also suggests that opportunities exist for further research in the future in this identified area of tourism administrations. This can possibly facilitate ensuring guidelines a rewarding tourism industry in the country.