Caspian Sea: State of the Environment 2019

3.2.4. Tourism

tial to develop, which can be achieved if strategic partnerships and investments aremade (Andrades and Dimanche 2017). Astrakhan Oblast is the most visited region near the Caspian section of the Russian Federation. In 2016, 72.6 per cent of the total number of collec- tive accommodation facilities and 60.7 per cent of the total number of people staying in them were located in this region, followed by the Re- public of Dagestan (21.3 and 32 per cent respec- tively) and the Republic of Kalmykia (6.3 and 7.4 per cent respectively). In the Russian Federation’s Caspian section, 145 tourist organizations were registered in 2016. Most of these were located in Astrakhan Oblast (125 organizations), with just 12 in the Repub- lic of Dagestan and eight in Kalmykia). In total,

Tourism has significant importance to the econ- omies of the Caspian littoral states, contribut- ing to their GDPs. In Azerbaijan, the travel and tourism sector contributed 4.5 per cent to the GDP, providing jobs to 1.5 per cent of the total workforce in 2017 (Azerbaijan 2018). Invest- ments of between 2 and 5.4 per cent were made in each country’s travel and tourism sector in 2016. The sector is expected to grow in the next decade, creating tens of thousands of jobs in the countries (World Travel and Tourism Council [WTTC] 2017). In 2015, the southern coast of the Caspian Sea in Iran, was visited by over 33 million tourists, in- cluding the most popular provinces of Mazanda- ran (8 million), Gilan (1.9 million) and Golestan (209,000). In Kazakhstan, there has been positive develop- ment in the tourism sector, thanks to state sup- port measures and properly developed state poli- cy for the 2015–2018 period. In accordance with the approved “Concept of Tourism Industry Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan until 2023”, the Mangystau Region is the centre of the “Caspian Gates” tourist clus- ter in western Kazakhstan and has the capacity to develop cultural, ethnographic, camping, en- vironmental and sport tourism. In efforts to further develop the region’s tour- ism, an action plan for tourism development was drafted and approved, which includes activities to improve tourism infrastructure (roadside ser- vice sites, visitor centres, road repairs, water, gas and electricity supply facilities), digitize tourist facilities, and promote the region’s tourism po- tential through training (Official Internet Re- source of Akimat of Mangystau Region 2018). At present, the tourism industry generally attracts domestic holidaymakers and does not attract large numbers of international tourists. Most tourists arriving in Kazakhstan come from former Soviet countries. The main challenges facing the industry are poor infrastructure and varying standards of service between regions. The sector has the poten-

Number of tourists in 2016, thousands

less than 1 no data 10 - 100 100 - 500 500 - 1 000 1000 - 2000 8038

Atyrau

Astrakhan

RUSSIA

Atyrau

Kalmykia

Astrakhan

Aktau Fort Shevchenko Kuryk

KAZAKHSTAN

Makhachkala

Kaspiysk

Mangystau

CASPIAN SEA

Izberbash

Derbent

Dagestan

Nabran

Guba-Khachmaz

Sumgayit

AZERBAljAN

Absheron

Turkmenbashi

Aran (East)

Baku

TURKMENISTAN

Awaza

Lankaran

Balkan

Lankaran Astara

Bandar Anzali

Golestan

Ramsar

Gilan

Babolsar

Nowshahr

Bandar Tokman

Chalus

Mazandaran Mahmoudabad

IRAN

Border

Coastal tourism Beach

Basin Country Administrative units

Fishing and hunting

Divers Birdwatching

0

100 km

Sources: National statistical offices; Chuchilova, 2016; DagTourism, 2017; Iran Daily, 2015; Iran Visitor; Mixfacts, 2016; MK-Astrakhan, 2016; Sorokin, 2016; TASS, 2017 and 2018; Vesti-Kalmykia, 2016.

Map by Manana Kurtubadze, GRID-Arendal, April 2018.

Figure 3.4: Tourism around the Caspian Sea

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