KATHMANDU: Nepal’s Minister for Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, Badri Prasad Pandey, has been honored with the ‘Tourism Minister of the Year’ award for the Himalayan region at an event in Berlin, Germany.
The award was presented during the ‘World Tourism and Aviation Summit-2025’, organized by the Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA) in Berlin.
This recognition is part of the ITB Berlin annual awards, which have been presented since 1999 to tourism ministers who have made significant contributions to the sector.
Tourism entrepreneurs attending the event described the award as an international recognition of Nepal’s efforts to promote tourism, crediting Pandey’s leadership and the government’s tourism policies for this achievement.
Reacting to the honor, Pandey stated that the recognition should be seen as a collective achievement for Nepal’s tourism industry rather than a personal accolade.
He also highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence in enhancing tourism services and highlighted Nepal’s efforts to foster community-friendly tourism, promote eco-friendly hospitality, and increase investment in green infrastructure.
Prior to receiving the award, Pandey also participated in the ITB Ministers Summit-2025, where global tourism leaders discussed the future of sustainable travel and digital innovations in the industry.
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