In Kathmandu's tourist hub of Thamel, where trekkers rub shoulders with Buddhist monks, the mood was optimistic this week after a landmark peace pact to end a decade of bloody insurgency.

"With this peace deal, I am expecting a lot more tourists in 2007 than we had this year," said Ram Ghale, the owner of Ghale Trekking and Tours in Thamel, where swank coffee bars sit alongside traditional handicraft shops.

Ghale left Nepal for Japan in 2002 because his tourism business was going down the drain, but returned in 2005 and is now hopeful that the industry, crucial to Nepal's economy, has a brighter future.

"The signing of this deal has caused a lot of happiness and over the past few weeks we have had a lot of enquiries from all over the world," said Ghale.

In 1999 the Himalayan country, peppered with stunning mountains and ancient temples, welcomed around 500 000 tourists, but the rebel insurgency that intensified in 2001 saw tourist numbers plummet.

Last year, around 277 000 people visited the Himalayan nation. The figure is likely to be lower still this year, despite an influx of travellers in recent weeks arriving for the trekking season.

"I am optimistic that we are going to have a huge jump in tourist arrivals after the signing of this accord," said Narendra Bhajrachary, a hotelier and the former head of Nepal's Hotel Association.

Under the landmark peace pact inked with the government this week, the rebels are to enter the political mainstream and get seats in a new parliament slated to be formed before the end of the month.

Tourist tax to fund war

The decision to join the government is also expected to mean the end of a parallel administration in the countryside controlled by the rebels, who levied "taxes" on trekkers to fund the "people's war."

"Now the government and Maoists should collectively make an effort to stop the people who have been extorting in the name of the Maoists. This extortion has been spreading a negative image for tourism in Nepal," said Bhajrachary.

Part of the accord signed by rebel leader Prachanda and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala is an agreement that the rebels will no longer seek funds through extortion or forced donations.

Tourism accounts for around four percent of Nepal's economy. Revenues between 2004 and 2005 fell by 17 percent from $180-million to $148-million, the Himalayan Times reported on Wednesday.

Many countries warned their nationals against visiting Nepal during the massive protests in April that forced King Gyanendra to end his 14-months of direct rule, but this should now change, a tourism official said.

"We want to give a message to the world that Nepal is now one of the safest tourists destinations in the world," said Tek Bahadur Dangi, the chief executive officer of the Nepal Tourism Board.

AFP

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