During his meeting with the Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Zurab Pololikashvili, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ensured that the Greek government shall assist and support the effort of the World Tourism Organization in the sector of Sustainable Tourism Development and expressed a strong desire for close collaboration to further boost Greek tourism. The Minister of Tourism, Harry Theoharis, attended the meeting as well.
At the beginning of the meeting, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization, Zurab Pololikashvili, had the following brief discussion:
Prime Minister: We are delighted to have you in Greece. As you know, tourism is extremely important to this country and we have formed a highly ambitious agenda to ensure that what we offer is consistent with the trends of Sustainable Tourism Development worldwide. This is also a great opportunity to discuss the best practices and methods via which you can assist us, with respect to our common priorities. We are, indeed, pleased to have you here.
Zurab Pololikashvili: First of all, thank you for this opportunity. Congratulations on the number of tourist arrivals and on your leadership in the field of Sustainable Tourism Development, which is crucial at this point for Europe, for the planet, for all of us. You have an excellent team. I am very proud and glad to work with the Minister (Harry Theoharis), my new friend. We have very interesting projects that require your support. I am sure you will grant it. Allow me to compliment your leadership once more. A leadership as such is of critical importance, because as we travel, we notice the support and priority given to the sector of tourism and we want to show to the entire world that Greece is an exceptional example; following the events of the last ten years and the significant challenges you faced, you remained united, demonstrating great resilience. I am certain that future success will be reflected not only on tourist arrivals but also on the revenue…
Prime Minister: As I mentioned to the Minister, our focus is not only on the number of people visiting Greece, but on the revenue and on environmental sustainability with respect to our seas, as well. As Greece emerges from a prolonged crisis, we have the opportunity to act differently this time. We have a unique natural and cultural environment that we need to protect. There are regions of the country practically unknown to tourists, such as our mountains and a lot of mainland areas, and there is so much more we can do to connect our cultural legacy to tourist experience. This is something I am deeply interested in and we have much to talk about.
In the meeting, it was agreed that we will cooperate with the UNWTO Tourism Academy more closely and establish the UNWTO International Centre in Athens, aiming at the reform of the Tourism Schools of the Ministry (learner skills, training) and at their establishment as region-wide Centres of Tourism Educational Excellence.
At the same time, our country will hold Master Classes in collaboration with leading companies of the industry in the fields of Marketing, Data Management and Conference Tourism.
In 2021, Greece will organise an investment Forum concerning investments in Tourism, whereas both sides agreed to enhance their cooperation in matters such as startup innovations, including the CapsuleT Accelerator, under the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels, in the Innovation Hub network of the Word Tourism Organization.
