Synopsis
On April 9, Goa's Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte highlighted the role of homestay policies in empowering women and promoting inclusive tourism, aligning with PM Modi's vision of 'Viksit Bharat' during the launch of the Goa Unseen guidebook by Airbnb.Key Takeaways
- Homestay policies aim to empower women.
- Focus on inclusive tourism in rural areas.
- Collaboration with Airbnb to enhance tourism.
- Government's role as a facilitator in policy-making.
- Importance of skill development and marketing.
Panaji, April 9 (NationPress) Rohan Khaunte, the Minister of Tourism for the Government of Goa, discussed the homestay policies, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of 'Viksit Bharat' through “Yuva Shakti and Mahila Shakti.”
During the launch of the guidebook Goa Unseen, developed by Airbnb in partnership with the Goa Tourism Department, Khaunte stated: “One of our initiatives, which we thought of, with our Prime Minister discussing Viksit Bharat, is built around four pillars; we focused on two in the tourism sector.”
“The first is Yuva Shakti, and the second is Mahila Shakti. From Mahila Shakti, we conceptualized the entire idea of the homestay policies being integrated,” he mentioned.
“The homestay policies are currently empowering women, advocating for inclusive tourism. We are emphasizing homestays in rural areas, highlighting tourism's inclusivity, particularly in the rural sector, where we can craft a new narrative. This initiative began with Airbnb's involvement,” he noted.
He continued: “They were the pioneers in collaboration. Congratulations to them for devising a policy framework that every state should adopt. Collaboration is essential for progress.”
He added: “It is often said that the government can act as a facilitator; we cannot directly engage in business. Thus, we must facilitate policies while others implement the standard operating procedures, ensuring the right metrics for skilling and marketing, to build a new narrative.”
