Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis this morning spoke of rehabilitation and embellishment works that will be carried out by a Foundation for the Development of Tourism Zones, as part of "enhancing quality along the entire tourism value chain."
Speaking during a Malta Tourism Authority Business Breakfast, entitled Working Collectively, Achieving Together, Minister Zammit Lewis stressed the work being undertaken to make Malta a tourist destination year-round.
United Nations World Tourism Organisation projections for Malta's tourism has been surpassed, said the minister.
"Comparing 2014 to 2015, we had 93,000 more tourists spending €115 million more."
He went on to speak about the need to maintain growth through investment of human resources. In recent weeks he brought attention to the large number of employees within the tourism sector who are choosing to leave the industry.
He has said that subsidies given to employers within the industry should be partly passed on to their employers.
On this note, he said that energy tariff reductions for the industry will amount to millions being saved, giving the industry breathing room to grow and invest.
Dr Zammit Lewis said he is engaging with all relative stakeholders in order to secure their commitment towards enhanced working conditions and the professional quality of the tourism workforce as a whole.
"I want the Institute for Tourism Studies to grow and develop further, both in terms of academic excellence and in the number of students who choose tourism as their career. I recently announced the setting up of a Committee, tasked with identifying existing skills gaps within the industry; gaps which can then be addressed through appropriate training courses delivered by ITS. This initiative will surely bring the Institute closer to the current and future needs of the private sector."
"Meanwhile, ITS accredited courses are also being organised within the Training Aid Framework, allowing workers to re-skill or up-skill their capabilities. All this has been topped up by the allocation of €56 million towards a new state of the art ITS campus at Smart City."
He also announced a sponsorship which will guarantee private work placements for ITS students.
In 2016, MTA will be managing more beaches, including further Blue Flag Zones, he said. He also introduced an Environment Contribution as of 1 April, where all revenue generated will be used exclusively to improve the local infrastructure and enhancement of the general quality of the Maltese product.
He made reference to the "record" number of tourism being experienced in the otherwise known as shoulder months. He said that collaboration and hard work with Malta International Airport has helped to increase both connectivity and accessibility.
MTA CEO Paul Bugeja said that reducing seasonality within the industry, increasing the quality of services which Malta has to offer and sustainability of the industry are among the main goals of the MTA.
He praised the stellar tourism year Malta has experienced in 2015:
"We as a team and as a country have delivered, 1.8 million arrivals with overall good results from all sectors is no mean feat. The total overall increase of 100,000 arrivals represents over 5% incremental on an already high and a record year – 2014. This is considered substantial on its own merit."
"When one delves further and reflects that we lost over 35,000 from what were considered as lucrative markets, such as Libya and Russia, the real increase from all other performing markets is over 138,000 which represent a staggering increase of 8.5%."
Mr Bugeja said that in 2015, three world-known American authors were invited to Malta. He explained that they are "already writing books" which are set, or partly set in Malta. He said that some are sure to be turned to films, and that such innovative ideas go a long way in networking and increasing visibility.
He too mentioned the ultimate goal of having a steady flow of tourists year-round, rather than a concentration of tourists in the summer months.
"...the first quarter of 2015 was the first ever that hotels reported profits. This is happening in a period that is usually a loss-making one. By September of last year, hotels had reported substantially increased profits, both through volume but more importantly through improved rates in all categories."
He said that having quality events hosted in Malta, inclusive of conventions and seminars is a key way to attract quality tourism throughout the year. He spoke of the Lovers Tree Garden for newly-married foreigners, an initiative which has sprouted from "a nice that is growing substantially."
He concluded by cautioning the need to coordinate activities, and keeping on the "watch out" is imperative to maintain and build on the success within the industry.
from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/1UJa3UX
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