TOURISM IN KYRGYZSTAN - Tourism in Central Asia: Cultural Potential and Challenges - page 263

unpolluted environment. 6 It has great biodiversity in terms of flora and
fauna with its “extensive snow-capped mountains” (The World Bank,
1993) that contribute a lot to the image of the country. There are also many
green forests and rivers as well as many highland lakes (Oktay 2011).
As elsewhere, in Kyrgyzstan too, tourism is considered to have great
potential for poverty reduction and foster economic growth, as it creates
opportunities for investments, jobs, and communal and regional devel-
opment (Kennedy and D'Arcy, 2009). As such, the tourism sector also
becomes crucial for the poor people by creating the conditions in which
they can make a better life for themselves. Known as “pro-poor tourism”
this sector may significantly help reduce poverty in the country (Özdil et
al., 2008). 7
Considering the geographic conditions of Kyrgyzstan, such a goal may
be quite attainable, as it offers a rich variety of activities for tourists. The
country is ideal for certain tourism activities such as canoeing, sailing,
rafting, skiing, scuba diving as well as hunting, fishing, horseback rid-
ing and camping. In addition to these, it is also possible to be engaged in
health tourism and ecotourism in Kyrgyzstan, a country with a warm cli-
mate and rich fauna and flora. Last, but not least, cultural tours (commonly
known as the “Silk Road tours”) are also highly demanded, as the country
is located on this legendary route (Oktay, 2008; Werner, 2003).
As Seval et al. (2003) suggest, Kyrgyzstan can be divided into six dif-
ferent regions in terms of its tourism opportunities: Issyk-Kul, Chui, Osh,
Talas, Naryn and Batken. Each of these regions has the potential to con-
tribute to the development of the tourism sector in the country. The Issyk-
Kul region takes its name from the Issyk-Kul, the world's second largest
alpine lake at 1,608 meters high (Özcan, 2010). The lake, being 170 km
long (Anderson, 1999), covers an area of 6,000 square km (Kort, 2004),
and it is the deepest lake on earth with 695 meters (Balbay, 1999). Accord-
ing to the local legend, the lake extends to the center of the earth (Kort,
2004).
6 However, uranium mining, a legacy of the Soviet Union, is one source of environmental pollution that
affects regional rivers (Sievers 2003, 31). According to some accounts, “Kyrgyzstan is littered with
49 uranium dumps that hold 145 million tons of radioactive waste” (Kort 2004). As will be mentioned
below, in the post-Soviet era, Lake Issyk-Kul was also faced with the challenge of pollution.
7 This is one of the basic reasons why young people in Kyrgyzstan who are being educated in the field
of tourism believe that their profession will be one of the most important ones for their country in the
future (Batman and Oktay 2008, 108).