Tourism’s capacity to connect cultures discussed in Lebanon
The increasing relevance of religious and cultural tourism and the opportunities it offers to link the countries in the Mediterranean was the focus of a series of events on ‘Connecting People and Cultures through Tourism in the Mediterranean region.’ The events held in Maghdouche and Beirut, were organized by UNWTO and the Ministry of Tourism of Lebanon.
The first event – a round table on religious tourism, with the participation of CNN’s John Defterious – explored the challenges and opportunities for the development of religious tourism routes in the Levant as well as cross-country pilgrimages and networks of religious tourism destinations as effective means to foster regional development and integration, cross-cultural exchanges, understanding and self-education and learning.
“Never before have so many people visited so many places and seen so many diverse cultures, traditions and faiths. Religious tourism can in fact be one of the most effective tools to foster mutual understanding and sustainable development” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai opening the roundtable.
The meeting, held in Maghdouche, was followed by a ceremony organized by the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism marking the launch of ‘our Lady of Mantara’ as a destination for international religious tourism.
The second day was dedicated to the meeting of the Working Group of the Phoenicians´ Route Cultural Tourism Programme.
Michel Pharaon, Minister of Tourism of Lebanon, said “the Phoenician Route has cultural, humanitarian and tourism benefits, for Lebanon and 17 other Mediterranean and European Union countries while fitting UNWTO’s objectives, which has adopted this vital regional project.”
“The Phoenician route is widely recognized not only as a historical cultural and trade-based itinerary, but also as an initiative to interconnect all the diverse backgrounds existing in the region since ancient times. We are upon an unprecedented occasion to revive the identity of the Mediterranean and its tourism sector so that all societies in the region can capitalize the immense opportunities that it brings to 18 participating countries and tourism destinations across more than 2800 kilometers in terms of economic development and job creation,” said Mr. Rifai.
The events counted with the participation of the Ministries of Tourism of Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt and international organizations such as UNESCO and ASCAME. The Council of Europe was represented by Stefano Dominioni, Director of the European Institute of Cultural Routes (EICR) and Executive Secretary of the Enlarged Partial Agreement (EPA) on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe who expressed the full cooperation of the Council to the development of the Phoenicians´ Route as a cultural tourism programme.
The meeting concluded with the four key areas of focus as next steps: 1) the development of itineraries, 2) involving local communities, 3) joint marketing and promotion, and 4) travel facilitation.
The Phoenicians´ Route Cultural Tourism Programme provides a valuable opportunity to build upon the existing cultural route and facilitate the development of a strategic plan for tourism itineraries, engaging stakeholders in the region and encouraging the alignment of resources and funds for tourism product development, capital projects, visitor experiences, marketing and promotion.
UNWTO Asia Pacific Forum: Feedback from an African Tourism Minister
The 28th United Nations World Tourism Organization joint Commission of South Asia and the Pacific in Nara, Japan concluded.
The minister of tourism from Zimbabwe Hon. Walter Mzembi told eTurboNews about his input. Minister Mzembi is also running to be voted in as the new UNWTO Secretary General at the upcoming 2017 election in China.
He stated: “Made an Africa Look East, Look Everywhere presentation, it was well received.
I Made a case for ZIMBABWE and the role of tourism in the Visit-Trade- Invest value chain , and how the East can leverage on its none historical baggage status to exploit win win partnerships with Africa,
It was already exemplified by FOCAC, Korea Africa Forum, TICAD, Indo Africa Forum, Thailand Africa Forum.
I urged more forums to mitigate African fragmentation born out of Colonialism.
I advocated for tailored funding for Tourism Development, as in the numerous instances it is not prioritized.
Tourism and SECURITY remains a key challenge, but I emphasized the broadening of insecurity to include natural disasters, health, food , which are akin to Africa.
I closed my presentation with an expose on AU Agenda 2063 and its attendant opportunities, that the Africa we want , going forward will bring to the fore many deals.
When the minister was asked by Zimbabwean Tinashe H Kanda why he would travel to Japan for a regional Asia/ Pacific regional conference he had this to respond:
I got an answer for Tinashe H Kanda, in response to a good question, why I travel ?
Zimbabwe is Chairperson for the UNWTO Commission for Africa. There are five others, that include the Americas, Europe, Middle East, South Asia and the Pacific. Regional Commissions convene one statutory meeting a year, to which Chairpersons are invited to chairs their own and attend the other five, in order to improve horizontal communication and enhance the nexus between source markets and destinations. Apart from this it is an opportunity for the country to do its sales pitch to a collective of countries, least cost under one roof usually a minimum of 30, apart from affiliates and associates. We do not have the budget as Zimbabwe to road shows to source markets to secure the business, so we have been creative in identifying events where countries gather in multiples, and all we ever do apart from headline interventions is to market and promote Zimbabwe, which is my brief as the Country’ s Chief Public Relations Officer.
The modus operandi has not changed, all Ministers past , and my successors will inevitably follow the same. The only difference is I amplify my work through communication tools like FB, Twitter, Instagram, etc and this is as it should be. Now an effective promotion of the country starts first with the Messenger, and he has to be appropriately branded, have the passion and must basically be an open cheque book ! I do so much with very little, probably the least in the world, and my colleagues will attest to this: What I am armed with as I discharge my mandate, in the first instance is passion( I love what I do) , and secondly creativity. These two combined with Team Tourism support, has given me unparalleled craft competence, and lots of experience which the world is now wanting to convert for its own use, hence international elective processes I am currently participating in.
I have the financial turnover performance at home to attest to the above, and by Minister of Finance’s own admission several times in the last three years, it is Tourism which is paying the bills, with a projected leading sectoral growth of 4.1% in 2015/6 ahead of Mining, Agriculture and Manufacturing…all this with the least fiscal support , check the Blue Book, I am right at the bottom. I have not complained which is now Zimbabwe’s epidemic disease numero uno, I have understood my role and obligations, summarized in turning adversity into opportunity. Adversity yes, a product of your collective loud mouths as Zimbabweans, many of you desecrating your Country Brand daily, a very toxic internal and international discourse which I must explain at every instance and still lure the world, and tourists.I am often asked the proverbial John 1:46 question ” Nazareth, Can anything good come out Nazareth?”, the answer by Phillip to Nathan was an invitation “Come and See”…
August 2013, I invited the world to ZIMBABWE, 20 th Session UNWTO General Assembly, to ” Come and See”, the rest is history…
Finally, the answer to ZIMBABWE’s woes, today and in the future is gonna be hard work, productivity…and I take comfort in the Lord Jesus himself, when confronted in a similar manner as you have done, he had this to say in defence: “Up to this day my Father is still at work, and so am I”
Nothing amazing about flying , ndidzo tsoka dzebasa rangu, hotels and being in other countries, ndiko kubasa kwangu..
Hatimire, kugona basa lyricist
Summer is Coming In – ETOA Reaction to State Department Alert
Much coverage has been given to the US State Department’s issuing of a travel alert for Europe on May 31st.
In it they point out that Europe hosts “major events”, has “tourist sites”, sustains “restaurants”, has “commercial centers” and that there is also transportation. In particular, they note that two large events are occurring (the European Football Championship in France and the World Youth Day in Poland); and that both these events will cause disruption, some of which will be security related.
“The large number of tourists visiting Europe in the summer months” they caution “will present greater targets for terrorists planning attacks in public locations, especially at large events.”
John Kirby of the State Department explained “We took the opportunity, because it’s the beginning of summer, to make our concerns known.”
“I’m not aware of any specific, credible terrorist event around these events or in any particular place in Europe. This was issued … based on an accumulation of information,” he said.
There are several things to note about this release. Firstly, that it is an “Alert”, not a “Warning”. The latter are recommendations not to travel: what we have here is a general airing of unfocussed concern.
Secondly it is effectively a re-issue of the alert that was issued on March 31st after the Brussels attacks. Its recommendations (“Exercise vigilance..avoid crowded places…stay in touch with your family etc”) are the same.
There is no change in status: Europe was the subject of a Travel Alert last month.
Thirdly it recognises that countermeasures are in place, albeit with an alarmist twist: “European authorities continue to take steps to assure public safety and disrupt terrorist plots”.
“What is missing here is any recognition of comparative safety,” said Tom Jenkins of ETOA. “Eighteen of the top twenty safest countries in the OECD list are European1. The homicide rate in Germany is 0.5, France is 0.6 and the UK is 0.2; in the United States it stands at 5.2. Even if the State Department were to switch its gaze from violent death to traffic accidents, it would see that the US is behind on that score too . Europe is manifestly the safest region on earth.”
“It is always puzzling as to the purpose of these announcements. Such assertions would normally require a strong imagination. The declaration that high season tourists “present greater targets for terrorists” is seems purposefully irksome. This identifies a victim group, on the basis of no specific or credible information. Among the 500 million people who live in Europe, it is the tourists who have been picked out as being subjects of terrorism “because it’s the beginning of summer”.
“It has long been recognised that terrorism is a message system, and how we work to counter the mental threat of terrorism is a vital part of the counter-terrorism strategy. The announcements from the State Department seem to be doing the terrorists work for them.”
UNWTO and the Petra National Trust partner to promote sustainable tourism
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed by UNWTO and the Petra National Trust (PNT) with the aim to promote sustainable tourism policies in cultural tourism, to develop capacity building and knowledge sharing, and to conduct educational actions. The agreement was signed in Beijing, on the occasion of the recent First World Conference on Tourism for Development.
The MoU was signed by UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, and the President of PNT’s Board, HRH Princess Dana Firas
“The work developed by civil society organizations on the protection of heritage is a fundamental part of the tourism sector, and essential for the design and implementation of sustainable tourism initiatives involving and benefiting local communities. This agreement builds upon this principle,” said Mr. Rifai during the signing ceremony.
“This partnership agreement marks a new milestone for the Petra National Trust and will serve as the framework for joint cooperation between us. PNT will work closely with UNWTO to place preservation of culture and heritage at the centre of tourism development, and to expand PNT’s innovative cultural education and awareness programmes to local communities internationally. We thank UNWTO for their support and endorsement and look forward to a most fruitful partnership,” said HRH Princess Dana Firas.
Additional information:
Petra National Trust is Jordan’s oldest non-profit governmental organization for the preservation of national cultural heritage with a focus on the World Heritage Site of Petra.
