KATHMANDU: The Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal has held a series of meetings with the Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Khadak Prasad Paudel, the Nepal Tourism Board and private sector stakeholders to advance key priorities for Nepal's trekking industry, including a proposed law to protect the country's trekking trails and stronger implementation of the trekker registration system.

TAAN President Sagar Pandey said discussions with the minister and his secretaries centred on two priority areas: the effective implementation of the Trekker's Information Management System and a draft proposal for a Trekking Trail Conservation Act — a piece of legislation that would provide legal protection for Nepal's trekking routes, prevent unnecessary destruction of existing trails, restore damaged routes and promote responsible trekking practices with the active participation of all stakeholders.

The proposed act, referred to in Nepali as the Padamarg Sanrakshan Ain, addresses a long-standing gap in Nepal's tourism regulatory framework. Despite being home to some of the world's most celebrated trekking corridors, Nepal currently has no dedicated law governing the protection and maintenance of its trail network.

TAAN also met with newly appointed NTB private sector board members and NTB directors, where discussions focused on strengthening collaboration between the association, the board and the broader private sector. The meeting agreed on the need for a meaningful tourism marketing budget and an immediate action plan for rolling out TIMS effectively across trekking regions.

In a separate development, TAAN, the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee and Never Rest agreed to jointly launch a pilot project in the Everest region to assess the data-driven impacts of growing trekker and tourist numbers. The initiative aims to generate reliable, evidence-based data to support sustainable tourism planning and responsible destination management in one of the world's most visited high-altitude areas.