{"id":2849,"date":"2025-05-27T11:42:44","date_gmt":"2025-05-27T04:42:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/khasiapunji-the-birthplace-of-community-based-tourism-in-bangladesh\/"},"modified":"2025-05-27T11:42:44","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T04:42:44","slug":"khasiapunji-the-birthplace-of-community-based-tourism-in-bangladesh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/khasiapunji-the-birthplace-of-community-based-tourism-in-bangladesh\/","title":{"rendered":"Khasiapunji: The Birthplace of Community-Based Tourism in Bangladesh"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"186\" data-end=\"263\"><em><strong>In Khasiapunji, an indigenous minority community in Bangladesh, community-based tourism (CBT) has emerged with support from the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Bangladesh Tourism Board. This model not only generates income but also empowers local people in managing and shaping tourism development.  <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"186\" data-end=\"263\"><em><strong>Through local homestay experiences and cultural respect, the initiative is opening new livelihood opportunities\u2014particularly for women and youth\u2014while offering a promising template for sustainable tourism development in the country.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<h2 data-start=\"186\" data-end=\"263\"><strong data-start=\"189\" data-end=\"263\">Community-Based Tourism: From Global Concept to Local Practice<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"265\" data-end=\"721\">While community-based tourism (CBT) has been successfully implemented in various parts of the world, Bangladesh is only at the beginning of this journey\u2014and Khasiapunji stands as an inspiring point of origin. Initiated by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and coordinated by the Bangladesh Tourism Board under the Ministry of Tourism, the CBT initiative has gradually expanded to multiple localities, with Khasiapunji maintaining its pioneering status. <\/p>\n<p data-start=\"265\" data-end=\"721\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1607\" src=\"https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961344743-min-1024x572.jpeg\" alt=\"Community-based tourism in Bangladesh\" width=\"1020\" height=\"570\" srcset=\"https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961344743-min-1024x572.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961344743-min-300x168.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961344743-min-768x429.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961344743-min.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1020px) 100vw, 1020px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"723\" data-end=\"1163\">In this context, CBT is built upon a core principle: empowering local communities\u2014especially those historically excluded from tourism development decision-making\u2014to become active agents. Rather than passive participants, local people are engaged in policymaking, product operation, and financial benefit distribution. CBT here is not merely an economic model, but a development philosophy that places people and indigenous culture at its center.  <\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Community-based tourism in Bangladesh\" width=\"1020\" height=\"574\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/KrD3X7w4iHA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 data-start=\"1165\" data-end=\"1211\"><strong data-start=\"1168\" data-end=\"1211\">Tourism That Invites Guests to Stay, Understand, and Respect<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"1213\" data-end=\"1641\">Khasiapunji does not welcome tourists with luxury hotels or industrialized services. Instead, visitors stay in local homes, share traditional meals, and participate in daily communal life. They are offered the chance to live as locals\u2014to learn customs, rituals, cultural values, and even the Khasi language. This depth of experience is something mass tourism simply cannot offer.   <\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1213\" data-end=\"1641\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1608 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961227294-min.jpeg\" alt=\"This transformation is not only material, but also cognitive. One local leader once admitted that CBT was completely new to him. However, after witnessing its positive impact\u2014from real income to a revived sense of cultural pride\u2014he became a strong advocate of the model. Positive feedback from travelers reinforces this success: many return multiple times, bringing friends and family, as a testament to the authenticity and emotional depth of their experience.\" width=\"750\" height=\"563\" srcset=\"https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961227294-min.jpeg 750w, https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961227294-min-300x225.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1643\" data-end=\"1966\">However, such experiences are grounded in a vital commitment: mutual trust and respect. Visitors are expected to adhere to community codes of conduct, respect private spaces, and honor the emotions and dignity of the residents. These are not restrictive rules but necessary conditions for creating a fair, sustainable, and ethical tourism environment.  <\/p>\n<h2 data-start=\"1968\" data-end=\"2017\"><strong data-start=\"1971\" data-end=\"2017\">New Livelihoods, New Mindsets, and Long-Term Visions<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"2019\" data-end=\"2458\">The ILO identifies CBT as a powerful tool for promoting economic development and entrepreneurship, especially among youth, women, and vulnerable groups. In Khasiapunji, diverse new occupations have emerged\u2014from homestay operators and tour guides to traditional food producers and handicraft artisans. Each role contributes to building a vibrant, locally grounded economic ecosystem.  <\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2019\" data-end=\"2458\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1609\" src=\"https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961244265-min.jpeg\" alt=\"Community-based tourism in Bangladesh\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961244265-min.jpeg 720w, https:\/\/riat.vn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1674961244265-min-300x225.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2460\" data-end=\"3005\">This transformation is not only material, but also cognitive. One local leader once admitted that CBT was completely new to him. However, after witnessing its positive impact\u2014from real income to a revived sense of cultural pride\u2014he became a strong advocate of the model. Positive feedback from travelers reinforces this success: many return multiple times, bringing friends and family, as a testament to the authenticity and emotional depth of their experience.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In Khasiapunji, an indigenous minority community in Bangladesh, community-based tourism (CBT) has emerged with support from the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Bangladesh Tourism Board. This model not only generates income but also empowers local people in managing and shaping tourism development. Through local homestay experiences and cultural respect, the initiative is opening new&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2388,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[343,402],"tags":[407],"class_list":["post-2849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-based-tourism-en","category-tourism-news","tag-bangladesh-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2849"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2849\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2388"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riat.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}