A new think tank, the Bangladesh Travel and Tourism Council (BTTC), has started its journey in a bid to create a network of professionals and businesses to foster collaboration and knowledge sharing in the local travel, tourism sector. and hospitality.

The council held its first meeting Saturday at a hotel in the capital, according to a news release.

Shahid Hamid FIH, acting general manager of Dhaka Regency Hotel, chaired the meeting, which was attended by business leaders from the airline, travel, tourism and hospitality sectors.

A 15-member ad hoc committee has been formed whose coordinator is Kazi Wahidul Alam, editor of The Bangladesh Monitor.

Shahid Hamid, Acting General Manager of Dhaka Regency Hotel, Imran Asif, CEO of Air Astra, Akhteruzzaman Khan Kabir, Former Chairman of Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, Mujib U Ahmed, Professor, Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of Dhaka, Rubina Hussain, CEO, Institute of Hotel Management, Asif Ahmed, Acting CEO, Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka, Shakawath Hossain, CEO, Unique Hotel and Resorts, Rezwan Maruf, Director Sales and Marketing, InterContinental Dhaka, included in the committee .

Other members of the committee are Faruq M Ahmed, travel writer, Basudev Bhattacharya, former director of National Institute of Hotel and Tourism Training, Ishtiaq Uddin Ahmad, former chief conservator of forests, Masud Hossain, managing director of The Bengal Tours, Taufiq. Rahman, CEO of Journey Plus, and Syed Ghulam Qadir, CEO of US Bangla Holidays.

The meeting formed a three-member committee to constitute the council’s bylaws and a draft bylaws will be presented at the next general meeting to be held on November 23.