Minister Alain St.Ange heads to New York to address conference at the United Nations on Sustainable Tourism in the context of Small Islands
Almasalla- Arab Travel Portal News – Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture is heading to New York to address a conference on Sustainable Tourism in the context of Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) in the margins of the upcoming Preparatory Committee for the 3rd Conference of SIDS in New York on 23 June.
This meeting is being held following an invitation by the Permanent Representative of OIF, "L’Organisation International de La Francophonie" at the United Nations (UN) for Seychelles to co-host the event on "Sustainable Tourism in the context of SIDS". It is Minister Alain St.Ange of the Seychelles who will be delivering the keynote address and lead the various discussions at this conference on Monday 23 June at the United Nations.
The meeting, that is being co-organised by the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Seychelles to the United Nations and the International Organisation of La Francophonie, will be the opportunity for the Seychelles delegation to present the island’s experiences and best practices in sustainable tourism given the Seychelles leadership role in this approach.
Minister Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture will be accompanied to this conference on Sustainable Tourism by H.E. Mrs Marie-Louise Potter, the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Seychelles to the United Nations and also by H.E. Mr Ronald Jumeau, Ambassador for Climate Change and Small Island Developing State Issues of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Seychelles at the United Nations.
For the mid-ocean Islands of the Seychelles tourism remains the pillar of its economy. Since the last couple of years, the islands have managed their tourism industry through a working public / private sector partnership. The private sector led Tourism Board remains responsible for marketing whilst the Ministry of Tourism looks at all policy matters and acts as the facilitator for the industry that remains the backbone for economy of these beautiful islands. The Seychelles Tourism Board’s Director of Marketing has been a private sector nomination ever since the move by the Seychelles Government to install a public / private sector partnership for their industry that remains key to their survival.
The Sustainable Tourism approach is the established way forward for Seychelles where a personalised tourism concept is seen to be promoted instead of the mass tourism approach of charter operations. Since the launch of the Tourism Master Plan marking the 40th Anniversary since the Official Opening of the Seychelles International Airport by Queen Elizabeth 11 of the United Kingdom, Seychelles has been promoting their very own Sustainable Tourism Label which is today giving a marketing edge to tourism establishments adhering to the forward thinking guidelines of this eco-tourism label.
For the "Sustainable Tourism in the context of SIDS" Meeting on Monday 23 June in Conference Room 8, North Lawn Building of the United Nations, it is H.E. Mrs Marie-Louise Potter, the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Seychelles to the United Nations who will be delivering the welcoming remarks. She will be followed by Minister Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture who will be delivering the Keynote Address. H.E. Mr Ronald Jumeau, Ambassador for Climate Change and Small Island Developing State Issues of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Seychelles at the United Nations, Mr Tounao Kiri, the Program Specialist at the Institut de La Francophonie pour le Developpment Durable (IFDD) and Mr Gerard Ruiz, the former President of Global Partnership for Sustainable Tourism who will moderate on the presentation of the IOF’s Initiatives.
Following an open session of Q & A, H.E. Mr Ronald Jumeau, Ambassador for Climate Change and Small Island Developing State Issues of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Seychelles at the United Nations will present Conclusions Notes.
