Tourism Attraction and Facilities at Kuakata Sea

Beach: An Exploratory Study

Abu Zafour

Faculty of Business Administration and Management

Patuakhali Science and Technology University

1
Tourism Attraction and Facilities at Kuakata Sea
Beach: An Exploratory Study

2
Abstract This piece of repot is an assigned job as a partial fulfillment
of course requirementby our honorable course teacher Muhammad
Mizanoor Rahman Howladar. It’s an optimum aggregated outcome of 5
pupils about Tourism Attraction & Facilities of Kuakata Sea Beach.The
view of this report was to find out the true figure and importance of
Kuakata, focused on its every factor. Some articles are thoroughly
studied to make it is an effective report. The collected information’s
was thoroughly revised first, then the collected data were interpreted
to achieve the report objective.Kuakata is one of the beautiful tourist
centers in Bangladesh. It is in the south of our country. It has a width
sea beach. The tourist can see the sunrise and sunset standing from
here. For this reason it is said that its position is next of Sea city
Coxbazar.Generally Kuakata is a small area. Its way of communication,
Accommodation, Amenities, Beach sites, Market places, Costing trade,
Tribe area are described in this report. It has also some wandering
sites like the Rakhain Polly, Shima Buddhu Bihar, Jaubon, Fatrar Chor,
Gongamoti Chor, Rash Mela, Shutki Polli, that are enjoyable for the
tourist, are also given in our report.

Introduction

Tourism is one of the most dynamic industries of the present world.

People want to travel. This is the basic trait in human nature. Millions
of people are traveling each year from one part to another part of this
planet (Hasan, 1985). People are now prone to fun and enjoyment.
They intend to gather experiences of new things and new places, get
lasting pleasure, and know different cultures through visiting
destinations. They also want to escape from the pressures of work-
deadlines. People, being curious, move from one place to another,
from one country to another country, from one end of the world to
another, and may be in future, from one planet to other ones (Hossain,
1999). Thus tourism is one of the initiators of people’s movement, a
facilitator for exchange of knowledge, a provider of pleasure, a way to
enjoy leisure, and a means to enrich culture (Hossain, 2005).

3
The importance of any geographical unit as a tourist is determined by
3As i.e. attraction, accessibility and amenities, which may be termed
as the tourist qualities of a destination [Bukart & Medlik]. Attraction
may include site attractions, event attractions like Olympic Games,
and also religious festivals. Accessibility means facilities for easy
transportation and communications which enable a destination to be
reached and telecommunication facilities which enable tourists to
counteract their normal place of residence/work or elsewhere at-ease.
Amenities mean accommodation, catering, entertainment, medicare,
security etc. At the destination, these amenities constitute the primary
tourist services.

Today tourism industry is recognized as the single largest industry in

the world and, therefore, this sector has also become a major thrust
area of economic and business activities in most of the countries. The
impact of speedy and comparatively cheap air transport, the growing
world economy, rising standard of living, increased paid holidays,
monotonous and mechanized working conditions in developed
countries, etc., have made it possible for the tourism industry to reach
this position. All these things bring a great chance for Bangladesh to
develop tourism industry in the tourism world. Despite having all the
potentials, a lot of efforts are still required to offer right kind of tourism
products, facilities, infrastructure, accessibility and connectivity,
professional providers, reasonable price, safety of movements, and so
forth. However, even within the existing infrastructure and facilities
there is still a lot of scopes for Bangladesh tourism to develop (Hossain
and Firozzaman, 2003). Although the government has taken several
measures over the years for the development of tourism industry,
many of the initial steps are rather modest in nature and even now
much remains to be accomplished to give the industry a solid footing
and a real sense of direction (Ahmed, 1987).

Kuakata is on of the beautiful tourist spot of our country. A rare scenic

spot on the southernmost tip of Patuakhali district. Kuakata has a wide
sandy beach from where one can see both the sunrise and sunset.
Kuakata is located at a distance of 70 km, from the district
headquarters of Patuakhali. So to find out the tourism attraction and
facilities of Kuakata, it is very necessary to describe its various factors,
that way it’s called the tourist center.

4
Objective of the Study

As a business executive of the future, we should have to gather more

experience beside our study. We should not concentrate our lessons
only in classroom but to implement it in practical life that will help us
in our professional life. A clear objective help in preparation of well
decorate report in which others take right type of decisions. So,
identifying objectives is very much important. Our purposes of
preparing this term paper are:

1. To analyze the significance of tourism in KUAKATA

2. To study the existing tourism facilities and opportunities in

KUAKATA.

3. To create a significant judgment about it’s various resources.

4. To evaluate the potentials of tourism in KUAKATA

5. To identify the problems to the development of tourism in

KUAKATA.

7. To provide necessary suggestions and policy implications for

the development of tourism in KUAKATA.

8. To gather more knowledge and experience.

Literature Review

A relatively few works have been done as yet on the development of

tourism in Bangladesh. Various definitions on tourism reflect significant
differences of its meanings (Talukder, 1984) Tourism is the business of
the transport, care, feeding and entertainment of the tourists. Indian
Merchants Chamber states, ‘Tourism is a force that enriches, restores
and transforms ……… and does that both for a land and its people’.
Therefore, tourism may be defined as an industry which aims at
enhancing social and geographical mobility of the man by performing

5
a variety of necessary functions for fulfilling various human motives
with a view to earning profit.

Ahmed (1987) evaluated the role played by the government in the

development of tourism in Bangladesh. He found that despite all the
efforts and measures of the government and other concerned private
agencies, the industry has not yet “taken off’, got a solid footing and
given a real sense of direction towards its development. Pannell Kerr
Forster Associate’s report (1988) mentioned that the comfort, services,
and management of tourism firms in Bangladesh are all below the
level expected by the international tourists and the foreign community
residing in Bangladesh. It has suggested the Bangladesh Parjatan
Corporation (BPC) to prepare itself in playing its proper role as a
national tourism organization and facilitator of tourism development.
Hasan (1988) recognized inadequate activities of the tourism industry
in Bangladesh and emphasized the government’s role to identify the
potential tourist spots, build an infrastructure, and expand the existing
services and facilities. Hasan (1992) again blamed that Bangladesh, in
comparison to other South Asian countries, has failed to develop its
tourism as yet and attract a sizeable number of tourists to visit the
country, though it is endowed with different tourism attractions. He
recommended for planning necessary strategies aiming at the
potential markets and avoiding aimless policies to develop mass
tourism at the initial stage of development. Patwari (1993) realized
that it would be very difficult and expensive to develop tourism in
Bangladesh with the present state of technology and limited
resources. He then advocated for the development of natural
attractions and local traditions based on tourism in Bangladesh. Kamal
and Chowdhury (1993) criticized that Biman performs its activities in a
manner, which does not conform to the right orientation and business
philosophy. Hasan and Chowdhury (1995) suggested to erect good
quality accommodations blended with good restaurants and services
for the domestic travelers and establish more better quality units at
some administrative and commercially important cities to serve both
the domestic and the intra tourists. Hossain (1999) found that
Bangladesh tourism industry and its market have failed to grow
properly due to inadequate infrastructure, insufficient facilities at
different destinations, and inaccessibility to some destinations, bad
image of the country and lack of security. Alam (2002) mentioned that
Bangladesh may not possess the impressive monuments and

6
architectural treasures like its neighbours, but it does have something
substantially different to offer in its scenic beauty and cultural
heritage. Hossain and Firozzaman (2003) mentioned that though
tourism industry and its market have grown phenomenally worldwide,
there is no significant growth and development of tourism in
Bangladesh. But they expected that, even within the existing
infrastructure and facilities, there are still a lot of scopes of tourism
development in Bangladesh if necessary policy framework supports
the industry. Siddiqi (2003) blamed that there is a big gap between
what all the successive governments promised and what they actually
did for tourism development in the country. Many of the existing
literatures reviewed above clearly indicate that the tourism industry in
Bangladesh has not yet stood on a solid footing. Many reasons are
there for the backwardness and underdevelopment of this industry
(Hossain, 2005).

The Research Gap

The literatures reviewed above clearly indicate that a relatively little

attention has been given by the professionals and researchers to the
study of tourism development. Thus the issues of tourism
development have been largely unexplored. As such, literatures on
tourism development throughout the world are not enough.
Bangladesh tourism industry, being at its infant stage, is of no
exception to this. Researchers in Bangladesh do not seem to have
much attention too to the studies on the development of tourism
industry. Therefore, no comprehensive and worthy paper, research
monograph, or research report on this issue of tourism development in
Bangladesh have neither yet come out nor been available to the
researchers. The very few literatures available in Bangladesh offer
little help in developing a framework and drawing hypothesis for
further studies by the researchers.

Rationale of the Study

As there is no mentionable study on the growth and development of

tourism in Bangladesh and as the sector of the country has bright

7
prospect, a study on Kuakata seems to be a right attempt in the
present context. This will help identify the loopholes of tourism
activities in Bangladesh, divert the industry in the right direction and
ensure a substantial growth of this sector in the future.

Scope of the Study:

The research report focuses on KUAKATA. So, the research may not be
more comparable or more valid. Moreover, the report emphasized on
the secondary data such as from agenda of KUAKATA development
authority. Only the year 2004, 2005, 200 are considered for research
material. The past years information was not considered.

Methodology of the Study

Collection of data is an important part of a report preparing. For This

Purpose we went to KUAKATA for survey (Schedule Survey) and take all
the necessary information. We interviewed many people like the
tourist, managers of various hotels or motels, Boatman, General
People, The Rakhains etc. Besides this we got some information’s from
Kuakata development Authority. We also collect many articles
published in different Newspapers and journals.

Limitation of the Study

As a student of faculty of business administration and management

3rd year, we have lack of experience in making such type of reports in
absolute format. For this reason we suffered a lot. Beside this we have
faced the following hindrances in preparing this report: The report was
vested to us at time of our Level-3, Semester-1 final exam is knocking
at the door and we are burdened with other reports and
assignments.The faculty of business administration and management
is a newborn faculty of Patuakhali Science and Technology University,
for this reason the university cannot provide enough facilities for
making such type of reports.

8
 Significance of Tourism

On the basis of the world

Presently, tourism has emerged as the single largest industry in the

world and is contributing to the socio-economic development in most
of the destination countries. It brings economic, social and
environmental benefits for a country as well as for the world. The need
to promote the value of an industry sector should be paramount in the
strategic direction of any sustainable industry. Tourism is no different.
It is important that the industry focuses on social and environmental
as well as economic benefits of tourism. This is not to suggest that
economic considerations are mutually exclusive from those of social
cohesion and the environment. In fact, sustainable economic returns
can only be achieved through factoring in strategies that take all three
elements into account.

The emphasis on tourism in world will increase due to: The continuing
economic shift from traditional to service based industries; Greater
focus caused by terrorism and airline crises in 2001 that highlighted
the depth of tourism influence on economies and communities;
Concentration on industries with capacity to increase export earnings;
and Tourism being one of the few established industry sectors
projected to maintain significant growth over a long period.

Economic Value of Tourism

Tourism can promote and facilitate economic activity of the world that
supports aspects of regional life. For example, farm stays, cellar doors
and the purchase of local produce support agriculture, while the
purchase of other products supports local retail and industry. Tourism
spending also has a multiplier effect in the world economy as it is
spent and re-spent by employers and employees.

Tourism may generate income for local government of a country in the

form of rates and levies or as a result of patronage of local
government owned attractions and services. This income contributes
to the quality and quantity of local services and facilities provided for
the benefit of both residents and visitors.

9
S o c i a l Va l u e o f To u r i s m

Tourism activity offers social benefits, such as: Generating community

cohesiveness through the development of social capital, Facilitating
regional pride and local community involvement, and Contributing to
the revival of regional towns. Tourism also contributes to the
development of regional communities through building partnerships
between local people, local organizations and local businesses. By
being innovative and embracing tourism, Beech worth has
transformed from a contracting community based on institutional
employment, to a major tourism center with a growing population and
employment opportunity and diversity. Beech worth’s focus on
heritage tourism has enabled the preservation and conservation of
unique heritage streetscape. It now has a national reputation for
heritage tourism, special events, arts and crafts, farm tourism and the
bed and breakfast industry.

Environmental Sustainability

The tourism industry as a large, diverse and growing sector is an

integral part of the world’s economy and has an important role in
achieving environmental sustainability. It is argued that meeting this
sustainability challenge is essential for the future viability of tourism.
This is because more than any other industry, tourism possesses a
natural synergy with the concept. Environmental benefits of tourism
include: The opportunity to communicate the value of natural and built
heritage of the world and of cultural inheritance to residents;
Enhancement of the natural and built environment to meet rising
quality standards necessary to sustain modern tourism; Providing the
incentive for environmental enhancement or rehabilitation of areas
such as town/city centers and old industrial sites, including the
creation of employment in these areas; Cost savings to individual
tourism businesses through the adoption of waste and energy
minimization practices; Protecting and creating economic value for
resources which otherwise have no perceived value to residents, or
represent a cost rather than a benefit; and Raising awareness of
environmental issues and stimulating tourists to advocate for
conservation through education and interpretation. Environmental
appreciation can in turn enhance visitor enjoyment.

10
On the basis of Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a developing country and developing countries are

relatively important in the international industry as a whole on the
basis of the number of international visitors they receive, although
only a few are major destinations, Bangladesh is one of them. It is in
some developing countries that tourism is growing fastest, and/or
making the largest contribution to the national economy. The
importance of tourism to these economies shows that its effects go
well beyond those countries that are important international
destinations or are well known for their dependency.

Despite its poor-country status, increasing numbers of tourists have

visited Bangladesh, a new but minor source of foreign exchange
earning. Tourism in the early 1980s amounted to some 49,000 visitors
per year, but by 1986 more than 129,000 tourists--mostly from India,
the United States, Britain, and Japan--visited Bangladesh. According to
the Bangladesh Parjaton Corporation (Bangladesh Tourism
Corporation), some Tk 44.6 million in foreign exchange was earned in
1986 from the tourism industry. Now days the tourist amount and
earning amount become more higher.

Table No.01: Tourist Data of Bangladesh

11
Country Total GNI / Arrival Growt Tourist % Of
Population Capital s of h Contributio Exports
Below the Tourist n to GDP in 1999
Poverty line US$ in 1990- (Tourist
(Million) 2000 2000 Economy)
Yr 2001
1999
Banglade 38.8 360 20000 73.3 3.4 2.1
sh 0

Findings of the study

Kuakata is one of the two beaches (other one is in Japan) from where
we can see the blood red Sunrise and Sun set. This beach is 18 km
long and 3 km wide. People came here to see the sandy beach slopes
into the Bay of Bengal, also the huge expanse of water, the ever green
forest in surrounding areas, rows of coconut trees, boats of different
kinds and their colorful sails, and surfing waves. Kuakata is also a
sanitary for migratory winter birds. Many people visiting Kuakata find
interest in Buddhist temples located at nearby places such as
Keranipara, Mistiripara, and Kolapara. While many others find the place
interesting because of the unique customers and traditions of the
Rakhain community.

Kuakata a small city connect with the Bay of Bengal, situated at the
south of Kolapara Upozela, which is in the Patuakhali district. Kuakata
is 72 km away from Patuakhali district. Mog community lives in its
north, sea is in the south, preserve forest of Gongamoti is in east and
at the west the jungle of kuakata is situated.If we try to find out the
history of kuakata we will find that, a long time ago (around 1784)
Barmiest King "Bodofoa" illegally took position at "Arakan", on the
home land of Rakhains and started to kill them. So many of them
started to leave their homeland to save their lives. A part of them
came in "Rangabali" Ireland in Galachipa by boat. A big part of them
started to live in Kuakata and Kolapara. They started to live beside sea
and felt shortage of drinking water. So dug two "Kuas" in of getting
fresh drinking water. From this digging of "Kua" the name of the place
became "Kuakata".

12
 Wandering Sites

Beach sites

Kuakata sea beach is a nature of beauty. It is about 18 km long & 3.5

km wide. The tourist, who came here, can see the Sunrise & Sunset
from the same place. It's a great opportunity & in the world this type
of opportunity is only in Japan. The sea beach is surrounded by green
trees & beside the beach, there are many wooden trees garden &
forest, like The Foyej Miyar Coconut Garden, Lembur Chor, Jhauban,
Gangamotir Chor etc. These gardens & forests are the most attracting
part for the tourist. There are no quicksands in the beach. So the
tourists can frequently run, take bath, swim, & pick up cockle from the
beach. But there is no signal light to alert, no enough sitting place on
the beach, no life jacket, no coast guard & life saving men to ensure
security for the tourist.

There are two rivers; named Payra & Bishkhali are West of the beach &
a river named Agunmukha is East of the beach. They all are
concentrated in the Bay of Bengal. This entire river made a channel
about half kilometer outside from the beach. This half-kilometer is
about 3-4 feet deep & the channel is about 14-15 feet deep. This
channel is about half kilometer & after the channel the height of the
water is again 3-4 feet, it is about 2-3 kilometer. Now days, the beach
is consequently breaking down by the flow of water through the
channel. So, if the government could not take necessary steps to save
this beach recently then our country may lose a valuable tourist spot.

Rakhain Polly

13
It is not sure at which time people started to live in Kuakata. But every
body believes that Rakhain community were the oldest inhabitants
here. Once upon a time Rakhains were the majority here but now they
became the minority. But they have maintained their history, culture,
with in this Rakhain Polly. If you go there you can watch their life style
& daily work very closely.

Generally Rakhain's life style & cultural activities are different than
our. They are "Buddhist" in religion & "Buddha Purnima" is their main
religion festival around the year. Their every home has an own
embodiment. Most of women are engaged in making handicraft. They
made Lunge, Scarf, and Shawl etc. They have an own market in
Kuakata, named "Rakhain Mohila Market". They bring materials from
Burma & Cox-bazar. Men are engaged in agriculture. Most of them are
not educated. Often people of other culture interrupt their life style &
religion. So most of them are contracted in mind because they think
that they are small in number in our country.

Sima Buddha Temple

It is situated near the sea beach. The temple is made of wood & tin. It
cannot be accurately said at which time it was built. But it can be
surely said that it is very o;ld. In the temple there is statue of Buddha
made by eight metal situated on a three foot high stand. It is second
embodiment in south Asia.

Coconut Grove & Jhaubon

The coconut grove was built on 200 acre areas around sea beach in
1960's decade. But for the continuous & unprotect able breaking of
beach a part of the grove has already lost. At the east side of the
grove there is a beautiful Jhaubon (on 15 hector) made by the forest
department. At the sunlight of evening & at the moonlight the coconut
grove & jhaubon look very beautiful. At the daytime, the continuous
whizzing sound of Jhaubon hears very nice to visitors.

Fatrar Chor

At the west side of the beach there is a small Island named Fatrar Chor
(99705.07), a mangrove forest. People started to call it the "Second
14
Sundorbon". Keuya, Gauya, Goran golpata etc type of mangrove trees
are seen there. There are also many birds & animals like monkeys,
pigs etc.

Gongamotir Chor

Another attractive place for the tourists is Gongamotir Chor, which is

10 km east of Kuakata's main land. Though it is less known to visitors
for poor communication, the most attractive place here is the
"Gongamotir Lake". There are many trees like Keuya, Gauya, Saila etc
many animals like wild pig, monkeys etc.

Lembur Chor

Five kilometer east of Kuakata beach there is an attractive place

named Lembur Chor. There is a forest of Keuya, Korai, Gauya, Saila etc
of 1000 acor.

Rasmela

The word "Rus" mainly came from the word "Ros". This festival was
started depending on collecting "ros" in winter; later the festival name
became "Rasmela". It is one of the main religious programs of
"Monipuri". At the time of "Rasmela" festival many visitors came here
to enjoy it.

Shutki Polly

Shutki Polly is 4 km west of Kuakata. Fishermen catch many kinds of

sea fish from sea during the year but mainly the fishes which are
caught in winter season, are be sunned in process. This "Shutki Fish" is
supplied in many places of our country, mainly in Dhaka. The people
who like to eat "Shutki" but have not seen the process of drying fish,
this can be a place for them to get experience.

Accommodation & Amenities

15
Every year in Kuakata many tourist come from various countries,
mainly from Denmark, China and America. They stay there in hotels or
motels; there are about 32 hotels and 10 restaurants in Kuakata with
Tourist Holiday Home, R & H Rest House and LGED Rest House. But
among all of them about 10 hotels or Motels and 3 restaurants are
standard. Some hotels or motels offer meals to there guest by taking
charge but maximum does not do it.

In "Tourist Holiday Homes" every cook are trained by the UNICEFF for 6
months, but other Hotels and Restaurants cook are not so qualified.
For this reason the meal condition of maximum hotels and restaurants
are also below of standard and non-hygienic. But the meal cost of this
area is quite reasonable. The good restaurants, like The Shefard, The
Khabar Hotel -3 and The Tourist Holiday Homes etc. mainly offer-

Table 02: Food Menu

Breakfast Porata, Bread, Egg, Tea, Coffee etc.

Lunch & Dinner Rice, Chicken, Fish, Vegetable, Pea-Soup etc.

Lunch & Dinner Pilau, Chicken roast, Mutton, Soft Drinks etc.
(Special)

Ordered Item (Optional) Fish Item: Rupchanda, Sea- koral, Hilsha,

Prawn etc.

Others: Beef, Hotchpotch, Chaisnis Meal etc.

Source: Interview with the accountant, Tourist Holiday Homes,

Kuakata, Patuakhali.

The Hotel Business Union of Kuakata generallydivided the year in two

seasons: Peak & Off-peak.Peak season is from October to April & Off-
Peak is from May to September. In peak seasons the rent costs of the
Hotels are full and in off-peak season some Hotels offer 25% discount,
some offer 50% discount. The room rent of these Hotels is about
TK.300-TK.1500 per night, generally it depends on room size &
16
condition & varies from hotel to hotel.The main problems of these
hotels are room crisis in Peak season. They can't offer the visitors
sufficient room because maximum hotels have highest 10-12 rooms
and others below of this. There is also lack of Fast Food Shop & Chainis
Restaurant.Except room rent and meal facilities the Hotels &
Restaurants of this area does not offer anything like The Night Club,
Bar, Coffee Shop etc. There is nothing for enjoyment at night. So, at
night it becomes a boring place for the tourists.

Communication

There are several ways to come in kuakata from capital Dhaka or other
places of our country. To go to Kuakata, first people have to come in
Barisal. They can come Barisal by road, plane (from Dhaka), or Ship.
From Barisal they have to go to Kuakata by road. People can reach
Patuakhali by small ship from Dhaka and then go to Kuakata by ship
also. From Barisal to Kuakata tourists suffer a very disgusting journey.
There are five ferries on the way to Kuakata from Barisal, which is very
boring and time consuming for the tourists. The roads from Kolapara
(Amtoli) to Kuakata is very poor, no vehicles can go smoothly on this
route. Very often accidents occur on this route.

Transport Fare

There is no specific bus-stand in Kuakata, so buses stand on the

roadside that reduces the beauty of Kuakata. The distance and
transport fare from Dhaka to Kuakata and Barisal to Kuakata is given
below-

17
 Table No.03: Transport Details

From To Distance Bus Rate

Barisal Kuakata 112km BRTC 90tk

Local Service 90tk

Dhaka Kuakata (112+277) BRTC 240tk
km
Sakura, Saudia 350tk
Patuakhali Kuakata 70km Local Service 70tk

Source: Interview with the manager, Bangladesh roads and Transport

Corporation, Kuakata, Patuakhali.

In peak season the number of buses increase as its demand increase.

Market Place

Size of the market

Kuakata is a small area & the population is also fewer than any other
big areas. There are no super market or shopping mall. Mainly some
same types of shops together created a little market. There are mainly
two markets. One is situated just before the beach & another is
situated beside the Rakhain Polly & it is called "Rakhain Women's
market". About 35 shops are situated before the beach market on the
two side of the road & about 20 shops are in Rakhain Women's Market.

18
The size of every shop is small. As the market place is very near to the
beach, so it is very much popular to the customers.

Types of available product in market

Most of the shops of the markets & most of the products of the shops
are same. So we can divide the products mainly in 3 parts. a. Clothes
b. Shoes c. Showpiece.

The main product of the shops is cloth. There are many types of cloths
like shirt, t-shirt, bed cover, shawl etc. Winter clothes are very much
popular to the visitors. There also found many types of shoes, which
have demand to visitors. Many types of costly showpieces are also
found there. This showpiece is made from wood, glass & seashell. It
looks very beautiful & among visitors it has great demand.

Origin of the product

Most of the products are produced in Myanmar. At first this products

are came in Cox-bazar from Myanmar. Then it is sent to Kuakata. So
normally price of the products are more than Cox-bazar. But in the
winter season the local Rakhains produce some clothes. They use it &
also sell it in the market. Various types of Barmiz shoes are also very
much popular. Show pieces also come from Cox-bazar & some are
local products.

Price of the goods and financial position of the business

The price of the goods is not so high. But as the products bring from
Cox-bazar, so the price of the goods is higher than Cox-bazar. Mainly
all prices of the goods are in the customer budget.

The financial position of the business is very good. Kuakata is a great

tourist center in Bangladesh. A lot of visitors visit here every day. The

19
business is mainly depending & based on the visitors. In the pick
season most of the shop earns average 5000-7000tk every day. But in
the off- season the income becomes half of this amount.

Coasting Trade

Kuakata is very much important for coasting trade. There is also a

great chance for the development of the coasting trade. Mainly the
coasting trade is divided into 3 parts.

Fish business

The main business of the people is fish business. Most of the people
are involved to it almost the year. Fishermen go to the sea with their
boats & catch fish. They catch many types of fish. But in the rainy
season the Hilsha fish is very much demandable. Fishermen sell fishes
to the whole sellers & they deliver it to the other exporters. Exporters
export it in various countries. Beside Hilsha, Young porn fish,
Rupchanda is also very demandable. This young prawn is supplied all
over Bangladesh. Other sea fish like Loitta, Coral etc have also
demand in the market. dry fish business is also an earning source of
Kuakata. There is a special market for dry fish in Kuakata. Dry fish is
supplied all over the Bangladesh from here. Mainly from fish business
people earns lots of money & country earns foreign currencies.

Timber business

Beside fish business, timber business is very much important here.

Kuakata sea beach side is very much long & there are many trees on
the beach sides. Mainly the coconut & woodiest trees are on the
beach. There are also big jhaubon. There are some small forests on the
beach areas. And these forests are fulfilling in woodiest trees. "Fatrar
Bon" is a big forest in Kuakata & mainly woodiest trees are available
here. These trees are the life of the wood business. This wood is very

20
much costly & economically wood business takes a position in
Kuakata. These woods are supplied all over the country. But the mount
of the trees is reduced day by day. And it is very harmful for the
environment.

Other business

In Kuakata there are also some people who are farmers. In season they
produce jackfruit. The natural environment is suitable for it's
cultivation. So the production of it is very much high there. In village
area some other agriculture products are also produced. These
productions also help the economic growth.

Tourist Guide

There are many community, organizations, and web sites who offer
travels guides to KUAKATA. Some time these types of organizations
give packages for travelers.

Problems of Tourism in Kuakata

Kuakata is endowed with great tourism potentiality with its natural

beauty, tribal culture, special events, religions rituals, historical places,
forests and coasting trade etc. but unfortunately we could not yet
develop the infrastructural facilities which are pre-conditionally needed
to turn a place of interest into a tourist destination. Without developing
these facilities, we may not successfully market our tourist products to
target market segments. The other problems, which have been
identified, are as follows:

1) Political instability and unrest probably are the major reasons,

which prevent foreign visitors from visiting Bangladesh.
Vacationing international tourists’ arrivals are much less in
number in Bangladesh than other South Asian Countries.
2) In case of Bangladesh, we claim to have tourist attractions
(which include (a) site attractions, historical, scenic, climatic, (b)
event attractions: religious festivals, trade fairs) but in terms of
accessibility (i.e., facilities for easy transport and

21
 communications and also amenities i.e. accommodation local
transport, security, catering, medicare) we lag much behind than
many other South and South-east Asian countries.
3) The tourist attractions, which Bangladesh possesses, are not also
superior to the tourists’ attractions of other Asian countries. In
fact, we do not have much widely known historical places and
remains, monuments, personalities and other attributes which
India has, no mountain for trekking and skiing which Nepal has,
no temples and monuments which India and Thailand have, no
special culture and cultural festivals which India, Thailand and
Indonesia have.
4) Most of the tourists have a negative image of Bangladesh. They
portray Bangladesh as a famine and flood-stricken country with
dirty and poor inhabitants, overcrowded and lawless city streets,
in sanitary and unhygienic conditions etc.
5) The way of communication of kuakata is very poor (Mainly Amtoli
to kuakata). There is no fixed Bus stand in Kuakata & there are
also problems for the transport fare for the local buses. The
conditions of the bus are also not good.
6) One of the classic errors in tourism development programs lies in
insufficient planning or provision for infrastructure components.
7) Most tourists in Kuakata are busy in visiting places, walking in the
sea beach and monuments or relaxing with nature. But they have
nothing to do after sunset.
8) A tourist needs personal security and safety. We cannot develop
our tourism sector unless we can guarantee security and safety
requirements to the visitors.
9) The Hotels has seat problems. They can’t offer the visitors
sufficient seats in the peak season. There is also lack of sufficient
standard restaurant
10)There is no life saving man and signal light station in the beach,
to aware the tourist.
11)Now days, the beach is consequently breaking down. Its many
natural recourses are also hampered in many ways.
12)There is no good standard hospital and super market in kuakata
13)Kuakata is very much important for costing trade. There is also a
great chance for the development of the costing trade. But lack
of proper facilities its decreasing day by day.
14)There is no facility for the foreign tourist.

22
These problems have a negative impact on tourism in Kuakata as well
as in Bangladesh. To overcome those problems and make profitable
tourism industry in our country, we should take few effective policies.

Recommendations

If we want to attract more tourists, new directions, new strategies and

an integrated tourism marketing effort are required. The products
offered by Bangladesh tourism industry must be unique and they must
be competitive in the target market.

Following are some of the recommendations for consideration by

appropriate authorities that are essential for the development of
tourism industry in Bangladesh.

1) Tourism authority should develop its plan to attract tourists. For

this purpose attractive historical and natural spots should be
developed with all sorts of excellent infrastructure facilities in
order to offer the quality tourists major lavish services of
international standard.
2) As the tourist inflow to Bangladesh is still quite insignificant in
comparison to other South Asian countries, the prime
responsibility of Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (National
Tourism Organization) should be to promote the identity, image
and tourist inventories of Bangladesh in international market.
3) Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) should be responsible for
policy formulation, implementation, resource collection and co-
ordination. The function and responsibilities of the BPC should be
reviewed and reformulated.
4) As a part of the strategy and policy BPC has published and
distributed a number of colorful posters about Kuakata. We feel
that along with the descriptions of tourist attractions information
on transport and accommodation facilities, shopping,
entertainment and other supporting facilities should be
incorporated in the folders and booklets to provide tourists
enough information before deciding to take a trip to Kuakata.

23
 5) Till to day, tourism in Bangladesh is Dhaka-city-oriented. But BPC
should give higher priority to Kuakata in any planning for tourism
development in Bangladesh.
6) The national tourism organization of different SAARC countries
may develop joint programs and promotional campaigns and also
formulate a few package tour programs of different duration and
itineraries covering two or more member countries. This may
benefit the less visited member countries like Bangladesh,
Pakistan, Bhutan and Maldives.
7) Bangladesh should develop a master plan for creation of a
limited number of most attractive tourist spots like historical and
natural spots with modern transport and communications
systems. Comfortable accommodations, exotic recreational
facilities and other facilities and amenities as demanded by the
foreign travelers.
8) In Kuakata we do not have anything significant to offer to the
tourists at night. Therefore, some specific programs must be
chalked out to keep Kuakata visitors busy at night. In the mean
time we probably can open up some bars and dancing floors in
Kuakata exclusively for the foreign tourists. Only foreigners would
be allowed to enjoy drinks and dances to which they are
habituated.
9) A tourist needs personal security and safety. It is suggested that
separate police should be deployed mainly in the tourist spots
and other places of attraction.
10)Well-trained guides fluent in English and other foreign languages
must be provided. The folders, brochures and posters must be
printed in different languages.
11)Government should immediately take some necessary steps to
construct the road of Amtoli to Khepu para and establishment of
international standard hotel and motel facilities.
12)Developing the well linkage of transportation among the various
tourist spots.

Conclusion

Every tourist center of a country has some specialty & Kuakata is not
exceptional from this characteristics. It is one of the rarest places,

24
which has the unique beauty of offering the full view of the rising and
setting of crimson sun in the water of the Bay of Bengal in a calm
environment. That perhaps makes kuakata one of the world's unique
beaches. The long and wide beach at Kuakata has a typical natural
setting. This sandy beach has gentle slopes into the Bay of Bengal and
bathing there is as pleasant as is walking or diving. Kuakata is truly a
virgin beach-a sanctuary for migratory winter birds, a series of coconut
trees, sandy beach of blue Bay, a feast for the eye. Forest, boats
plying in the Bay of Bengal with colorful sails, fishing, towering cliffs,
surfing waves everything here touches every visitor's heart. The
unique customs and costumes of the 'Rakhyne' tribal families and
Buddhist Temple of about hundred years old indicate the ancient
tradition and cultural heritage, which are objects of great pleasure
Kuakata is the place of pilgrimage of the Hindus and Buddhist
communities. Innumerable devotees arrive here at the festival of 'Rush
Purnima' and 'Maghi Purnima'. On these two days they take holy bath
and traditional fairs are held here. All these additional offers to
panoramic beauty make the beach more attractive to the visitors. One
should visit Kuakata and discover the lovely grace of Bangladesh.

Reference

Accountant, Tourist Holiday Home, Kuakata, Patuakhali. Interviewed on

June 18, 2007

Jaman, Kamruz, Chairman, Shopkeeper Association, Kuakata,

Patuakhali. Interviewed on June 18, 2007.

Manager, Motel Sea View, Kuakata, Patuakhali. Interviewed on June 18,

2007.

Manager, Hotel Golden Place, Kuakata, Patuakhali. Interviewed on June

18, 2007.

Manager, Restaurent Shefard, Kuakata, Patuakhali. Interviewed on June

18, 2007.

Kuakata Development Authority. Minutes of the monthly meeting of

the Kuakata development authority members, Holiday Home, Kuakata,
Patuakhali, June 06, 2005. (In the office files)
25
Alam, Masud. The General Information of Patuakhali District Survey
Report, Patuakhali, December 01, 2004.

Hossain, Md. Afjal, 1999, Marketing of Tourism Industry in Bangladesh:

An Empirical Study of Performance and Strategies, Ph. D. Thesis,
University of Pune, P.2, 3 and 183.

Hasan, M.M. Rabiul, 2001, “Tourism: The Unexplored Gold Mine of

Bangladesh”, Holiday, September 21, P. 12.

Haque, Ahmed Shahidul, 1999, “Tourism in Bangladesh Perspective”,

The New Nation, October 2, P. 5.

Hossain. Md. Afjal and M. Firozzaman. 2003, Strategic Promotional

Approaches to Developing Tourism in Bangladesh: An Empirical Study
of some Selected Tour Operators, Bureau of Business Research,
University of Dhaka. P - 3.

Rahman, M. M. (2004), “Prospects of Tourism Industry in Bangladesh”,

The Financial Express, September 27, P.9.

Shamim, Ehsan, 2000, “Pro-Poor Tourism”, The Daily Star, December 5,

P. 5.

Bangladesh Monitor (Fortnightly), Vol. V, Issue No. 20, June 1-15, P.1.
….1997, “Potential of Tourism in Bangladesh Remains Unrecognized -
Unused”.

26