World Tourism and Culture conference set to discuss the Seychelles approach
Almasalla, ATP News- The UNWTO/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture: Building a New Partnership that will be held from 4 to 6 February 2015 in Siem Reap, Cambodia will see Seychelles present its approach that was adopted five years ago and that placed culture at the centre of the island’s tourism development.
This Conference will bring together, for the first time, ministers of tourism and ministers of culture to discuss the immense potential of working together to build inclusive economic growth, social development and cultural preservation. This event will also be a unique opportunity for policymakers, experts and practitioners to identify the opportunities and challenges of developing new partnership models that engage culture and tourism stakeholders at all levels in order to address shared responsibilities.
The conference will be attended by Minister Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture and Benjamine Rose, the PS for Culture is structured in two main blocks: a Ministerial Dialogue and four technical sessions. The Ministerial Dialogue will address the policy and governance framework necessary to foster a new collaboration model between tourism and culture, while in the technical sessions of the Conference, world-renowned experts and speakers will tackle global issues in tourism and culture.
PS Benjamine Rose has said that Seychelles has been putting not only a lot of effort in the development of its culture, but it has also embarked on a plan of action to make the rich Seychellois Culture more seen and more known in the Community of Nations. "We know that our culture has our very own DNA and we are proud of our culture. This is one of the reasons we embarked on a series of annual event to help showcase our culture and keep our performing and creative artists at the centre of the tourism development of Seychelles" PS Rose said in a recent meeting.
The marriage of tourism and culture in Seychelles has resulted in a Ministry that covers both tourism and culture and it is this experience by Seychelles that will be tabled by Minister St.Ange when he addresses the conference in Cambodia. Some 46 Ministers from right across the world have answered the call by the UNWTO and the UNESCO to join together to develop strategies to get culture better recognised in the development of the tourism industry.
