- India ranked 40/136 countries
- Index is released by World Economic Forum
- Spain is ranked 1st
- India related Facts:
- India continues to enrich its cultural resources, protecting more cultural sites and intangible expressions through UNESCO World Heritage lists, and via a greater digital presence.
- Some of the factors that helped India to improve its rank include international openness through strong policies such as implementing visa on arrival and e-visas, and improvements ground transport infrastructure.
- Moreover India’s vast cultural and natural resources and its price competitiveness advantage also attracted international tourists.
- India has seen continued growth in international arrivals over the past 15 years, reaching the 8 million mark in 2015.
- But, still it needs to improve health conditions which are inadequate at present, similarly, ICT readiness, security concerns and human resources are improving, but remain “weak”.
- Indian travel and tourism sector presents significant opportunities that are yet to be reaped, especially in provision of tourist service infrastructure, and also in terms of additional accommodation capacity and entertainment facilities.
- Index measures:
- It measures set of factors and policies that enable sustainable development of travel and tourism sector, which in turn, contributes to the development and competitiveness of a country.
- It further reveals how well countries could deliver sustainable economic and societal benefits through their travel and tourism sector.
NOTE: Above points can be mentioned in Tourism related answer and essay.