Tourism needs skilled workforce
Speakers at an online symposium also called for bringing changes to the curriculum of tourism and hospitality management education
The hospitality and tourism industry needs a skilled workforce after the Covid-19 pandemic to maintain safety of customers, speakers said at an online symposium today.
They called for bringing changes to the curriculum of tourism and hospitality management education, allowing students to learn more on how to deal with customers by maintaining different health safety issues.
Daffodil International University (DIU) hosted the symposium titled "Daffodil International Symposium on Hospitality (DISH Bangladesh)".
Dr Gowher Rizvi, international affairs adviser to the prime minister, inaugurated the symposium and declared the launch of Daffodil Oxford Centre of Excellence in Hospitality (DOCEH). He was there as the chief guest.
Dr Rizvi said it is a tremendous and timely initiative to establish DOCEH.
"The centre will definitely contribute to the development of our tourism sector and help create job opportunities after the pandemic period."
Donald Sloan, chair of the Oxford Cultural Collective and former head of the Oxford School of Hospitality Management at Oxford Brookes University, said DOCEH must emphasise on creating employment through the hospitality and tourism sector.
"The graduates should be skilled and qualified through international education networks and high-quality internships. Women will also have to be empowered through hospitality education."
Donald Sloan said a network with respected thinkers and practitioners has to be established to develop the tourism sector.
DIU Chairman Dr Md Sabur Khan said, "We need to change the curriculum. We will also have to develop our infrastructure for the upcoming tourism industry.
"We will try to find global employment opportunities after the post-Covid period and create value for our students and ensure student support services like internships and job placements in the national and international arena in the tourism and hospitality industry."
Javed Ahmed, chief executive officer of the Bangladesh Tourism Board, and Professor Dr M Lutfar Rahman, vice chancellor of DIU, also spoke at the symposium.
