Aruna Gaitonde
Editor-in-Chief of the Asian Bureau, Mumbai 
Iran has prepared a strategic plan for the development of tourism sector in the country through coordinated policymaking by executive bodies, academics, and the private sector, as per a report from ISNA.
Under the 2025 Tourism Vision Plan, Iran aims to increase the number of tourist arrivals from 4.8 million in 2014 to 20 million in 2025. The latest available data show eight million tourists visited the Islamic Republic during the first ten months of the past Iranian calendar year started March 21, 2019.
According to the report, the plan focuses on the effective elements of the tourism sector such as management, business environment, infrastructure, manpower, culture, advertising, and issues related to foreign nationals.
Also, the report added that defining main policies in the field of tourism, creating the ground for developing a national tourism development plan, implementing goals most dynamically and efficiently possible, more competitive environment, as well as empowering local tourism, natural and cultural tourism are among the other objectives of the strategic plan.
Iran expects to reap a bonanza from its numerous tourist spots such as bazaars, museums, mosques, bridges, bathhouses, madrasas, mausoleums, churches, towers, and mansions, of which 24 are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
The COVID-19 has plunged the country’s economy as well as the tourism industry to a dismal low. But, some experts expect Iran to achieve a tourism boom after the coronavirus is contained. As a country, Iran had ranked the third fastest-growing tourism destination in 2019.
