SOS for tourism

With the aim of strengthening national tourism, which has suffered losses after the closure due to the health emergency that has now lasted a year, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism is launching a set of new guides to good practices in sustainability for nature tourism service providers.

According to the Ministry of Tourism, the reactivation of international tourism, as well as the increased activity of domestic travel, requires tourism service providers and business owners in the sector to have the tools and knowledge to guarantee a positive experience for tourists, while also contributing to the environmental, cultural, and heritage conservation of the regions.

This will allow for a reactivation of the sector and Colombian families who depend on tourism will have an opportunity. “Restaurants, hotels, tour operators, informal vendors, companies and even airlines, to name a few examples, were economically impacted by the protection measures implemented during the pandemic,” explained Professor Ángela Ricaute, from the Tourism and Hotel Management Technology program at the University of Cundinamarca.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) stated that the Covid-19 health crisis impacted 531% of the total jobs generated by the sector globally, affecting 174.4 million jobs during 2020, and therefore they believe there must be a global industry recovery plan.

For its part, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism has been presenting strategies to reactivate and strengthen this sector, which is why it presents these documents that will help entrepreneurs in the tourism industry to acquire knowledge and improve their practices, to promote environmental conservation, social inclusion and cultural preservation, contributing to improving the quality of life of local communities and promoting responsible tourism.

“At a time when tourism businesses are focused on reinventing themselves to accelerate the industry’s recovery, these guidelines will be invaluable in promoting new practices that prioritize environmental conservation, but also inclusion. Only in this way can we preserve the quality of life of our communities,” stated the Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism, José Manuel Restrepo.

New guides, a new tourism proposal

From UCundinamarca, a promoter of responsible tourism, Professor Ángela Ricaute asserts that to achieve a reactivation it is necessary to return to nature tourism, very much in line with the Ministry's proposal that presents safe tourism in these destinations in these guides.

“It is important to achieve a synergy between the government, academia and the productive sector to advance tourism policies. In Cundinamarca there is no tourism planning from its municipalities and that is why it is difficult to unite to reactivate everything,” the teacher said.

Likewise, Ángela Ricaute explained that, although Cundinamarca has a number of heritage sites of great tourist value, they are not being exploited enough, and that the guides presented by the Ministry to support tourism are a great opportunity to start in the region in order to gain that confidence and thus reactivate local tourism and strengthen Cundinamarca.

The WTTC argues that health and hygiene protocols, including mandatory mask use, and the rollout of vaccinations should be strengthened as part of a comprehensive solution. It also calls for continued government support for the sector, including fiscal measures, liquidity support, and worker protections, as well as promoting the importance of the travel and tourism industry.

According to the tourism ministry, the new version of the tourism guides includes recommendations for the prevention of contagious diseases and is based on the new guidelines of the Sustainable Tourism Policy and the reform of the General Tourism Law.

Furthermore, it states that implementing these guidelines will increase the competitiveness of service providers and allow them to attract higher-spending tourists, among other benefits. The documents will be published for all businesses in the tourism sector, who can download them from: www.colombiaproductiva.com

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