Nobody in European or Asian countries knows Kyrgyzstan as a tourism destination: Minister

AKIPRESS.COM - Tourism is considered a major contributor to the economy and a large industry if its share in GDP is between 20% and 30%, Culture, Information and Tourism Minister Azamat Jamankulov said June 2.
Tourism accounts for 5.5% of Kyrgyzstan's GDP, which is very small figure for Kyrgyzstan with its big potential in terms of nature and culture, he said.
Nobody knows Kyrgyzstan as a tourism destination in European or Asian countries, Minister says.
"Tourists who come to Kyrgyzstan learn about our country from each other and through tourism companies. But we are not recognised as a tourist country like Turkey, Thailand or some islands in China," Jamankulov said.
Country is mostly visited by tourists from Kazakhstan and Russia, he added.
"We need to invest in order to make Kyrgyzstan a world tourism destination," he said.
He also spoke for big improvements in infrastructure.