Seychelles uses assets, friends to stay relevant in tourism industry |22 November 2014

Seychelles is using all its assets and friends in all four corners of the world to stay relevant in the world tourism industry, Tourism and Culture Minister Alain St Ange has said.

He was speaking to the media yesterday at the end of the two-day ministers’ meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) at the Savoy Resort & Spa.
Minister St Ange said Seychelles is indeed proud but also humble to organise this first tourism ministers’ meeting of the IORA region.

“It’s a meeting that is paving the way for the Indian Ocean Rim to have firstly an ongoing committee that looks at tourism, and secondly we must not have resolutions that sit in the files in the ministers’ office and just gather dust,” said Minister St Ange.

He added that concrete proposals have been made to set up sub-committees and also respective member states will have sub-committees that we all work to move their respective tourism industry forward.
 
The minister noted that “cruise tourism was high on the agenda and it is something that Seychelles wants.”

“Today we have the support of the whole Indian Ocean Rim to make our cruise tourism happen. We’ve looked at transport and tourism, how to marry these two ministries together as well as the tourism board and civil aviation. The Indian Ocean Rim has proposed that each member state has a committee that ties in the tourism board and civil aviation authority so that they can decide who goes after a new airline to come to the country. Our tourism and civil aviation delegations at the meeting could smile at this proposal as we started this working relationship two months ago to pave the way forward together for the benefit of the country,” said Minister St Ange.

Mauritius-based IORA director Firdaus Dahlan described the meeting as “historical” in terms of the IORA tourism cooperation.
“We have to coordinate with all member countries and try to encourage of them to implement what we have achieved in this meeting and develop tourism cooperation,” said Mr Dahlan.

Representatives from Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Sultanate of Oman, Seychelles, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Thailand attended the first IORA tourism ministerial meeting.

It was decided during the meeting that IORA recognises the role of tourism and travel in promoting sustainable development, economic cooperation, cultural exchanges and connectivity among member states and agreeing to set “Tourism and Travel within IORA” as the theme of this ministerial meeting.

The IORA’s role is an epicentral regional forum which connects countries with significant economic, cultural and historical differences bordering the Indian Ocean Rim.

That the Member States of IORA are guided by the following principles in our shared goal to foster profitable, sustainable and developmental tourism in the Indian Ocean region, and recognise that:

Member states of the IORA are guided by a set of principles in their shared goal to foster profitable, sustainable and developmental tourism in the Indian Ocean region, and recognise that:

•    The numerous facets of Indian Ocean rim region tourism should be developed and optimised in a sustainable way: adventure tourism, business tourism, coastal tourism, cruise tourism, safari and wildlife tourism, medical tourism, eco-tourism, cultural tourism, underwater tourism, youth tourism, spiritual tourism, among others;

•    Development in the tourism industry would be in keeping with the environmental rules, regulations and requirements of member states and United Nations/ international organisations;

•    The need to establish an IORA tourism core group in order to enable it to undertake comprehensive tourism research, monitor trends in tourism and travel in the region and to promote tourism as a key instrument to drive economic and social growth. Shared tourism knowledge and research should be encouraged in order to anticipate new innovations, trends, opportunities and challenges in the regional tourism sector;

•    IORA member states should attach higher importance to the tourism and travel industry and encourage closer regional cooperation through appropriate tourism coordination mechanisms in order to increase the competitiveness of the region.

•    Cultural exchanges between member states which would open communication channels and promote a common regional sense of belonging, should be encouraged in order to optimise the development of a cohesive regional tourism sector;

•    The fostering of tourism in the region would lead to a direct increase in trade, foreign exchange income, an inflow of foreign direct investment, job creation, poverty alleviation, infrastructural upgrade and overall social development;

•    The development of Indian Ocean tourism would generate entrepreneurship opportunities and contribute to poverty alleviation, especially among women.

•    The need to simplify visa requirements to encourage more people to travel within IORA member states and to increase intra-IOR region tourism and consequently, promote economic and social development;

•    Improving sea and air connectivity among member states is mandatory for growth of the tourism sector, especially for the small island states;
•    The Indian Ocean Blue Economy promises development in various marine sectors and should enhance the potential for tourism activities and services in the region;

•    The need for private sector engagement and public-private partnerships in enhancing productivity and competitiveness of the tourism sector;

•    Joint marketing efforts such as travel fairs and workshops could be used to raise the tourism potential and profile of the Indian Ocean Rim region;

•    Developing member states and showcasing an attractive investment climate would attract foreign investment that would contribute to the expansion of the Indian Ocean Rim tourism facilities and infrastructure;

•    The necessity to enhance relevant capacity building among the developing member states in order to help them to achieve sustainable tourism development;

•    Tourism and hospitality training dispensed to the youth and women would empower them to integrate this labour-intensive service sector, and hence alleviate unemployment; and
•    Established tourism destinations should assist emerging tourist destinations in the region to optimise their tourism potential.