11/02/12, 01:01:26 EST

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Tunisia hosts a workshop on tourism

alarabonline.org

A German delegation realizes that Tunisia relies on its collaboration to re-enter the German tourist market

A workshop organized by the German magazine specialized in tourism and business trips Die FVW, in partnership with the Tunisian National Tourism Board, opened on Tuesday morning in a hotel in Yasmine-Hammamet and is scheduled to end on Wednesday afternoon.

FWV editor in chief, Klaus Hildebrandt, gave on Tuesday an opening speech in which he greeted the audience.

Then, Tunisian National Tourism Board director-general, Raouf Jomni, launched the debate.

Jomni explained that tourism, particularly in the Mediterranean, entered an era of change before the beginning of the new millennium saying that efforts to develop the sector started actually in the nineties.

Jomni stressed that Tunisia have developed a strategy to ensure the development of tourism and reinforce a competitive position.

He added that this strategy has received, during the ministerial Council devoted to this subject on the 27th of February, the approval and the support of President Zine Alabidine Ben Ali.

The strategy about which the Director General spoke actually puts the stress on both the quality and the diversity in the sector of tourism.

Jomni announced that Tunisia will work on developing balneotherapy, a move that will help boosting both occupancy rates and receipts.

He also noted that up to thirty centers have already been integrated in quality hotel establishments and that ten others are under construction as the stress has already been laid on the rigorous respect of conformity with the international quality standards.

Jomni asserted that Tunisia will be equipped with 10 new golf courses by 2016.

Cultural tourism will also be boosted thanks to massive investments that aim at exploring archeological sites and protecting historical buildings, said Jomni.

Taking part in the debates, the representative of the Tunisian National Tourism Board in Germany, Naceur Mani, presented the audience with the strategies of communication adopted in Germany: Media advertising, and partnership with Tour Operators and travel agencies.

The representative of Tunisair in Germany, Ali Miaoui, revealed figures that show the company is doing well as flights from Germany to Tunisia are considered.

Miaoui said that Tunisair redefined its objectives after the catastrophe of September 11, 2001 closing Hamburg and Berlin offices, eliminating the flights bound for Tabarka and Tozeur, and focusing on regular flights to Tunis, Monastir and Jerba.

He added that Tunisair sales increased by 59% and that the company obtained 39% of market shares in Germany between 2002 and 2006.

Miaoui also expressed Tunisair hopes to increase its sales by 6% in 2007.

Thanks to the workshop, the German delegation, composed of twenty managers of travel agencies and five representatives of tour operators, realized that Tunisia relies on its collaboration to re-enter the German tourist market.

Representing one of the most important German Tour Operators in Tunisia and Morocco, Stefan Niemanns said that Tunisia has always been an innovator in the sector of tourism and that competitor countries like Turkey, Greece and Morocco have succeeded in copying its example and becoming its equals in the market.

Niemanns pointed that Tunisia, a splendid and very impressive country, will have to diversify and improve its services in order for it to not be outdistanced and left behind.

The first day workshop envisaged a working group that would help selling Tunisia as a destination.

Travel agents will collaborate jointly with Tour Operators' experts and Tunisian officials.

The objective is to see 600.000 German tourists choosing Tunisia as a destination in 2007.

 Printable Version  | published May 23, 2007