PATWA WELCOMES UNWTO CANDIDATES
(Posted 16th March 2017)
Alain St.Ange, the former Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine of the Seychelles and now one of the seven candidates for the position of Secretary General of the UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organisation) was on the panel of speakers at the PATWA (Pacific Area Travel Writers Association) Summit for World Tourism & Aviation Leaders on Peace, The Vehicle for Tourism organised on the sidelines of ITB in Berlin.
PATWA believes on the benefit of a vibrant tourism industry in a nation’s economy is only the top of the iceberg and that tourism should become the force on the promotion of world peace and the building of understanding and interdependence between Nations. It was therefor not surprising to see Dr. Taleb Rifai, the Secretary General of the UNWTO personally gracing this event and Anita Mendiratta, of TASK CNN to be the moderator of the Summit.
A great panel was in place as the Minister of Tourism of Egypt invited to address the Summit.
Alain St.Ange used the Summit to ask everyone to reflect on what is tourism so as to better understand PATWA’s call for using this industry as to be the vehicle for peace. St.Ange of the Seychelles asked if tourism was today the hotels or resorts, or was it the airlines of DMCs before speaking on the fact that tourism was the destination as a whole. ‘We can no longer be in a plush hotel and open the window to see a ghetto with people sleeping on the roads, we can no longer be witnessing a situation where the people of the country are disconnected with their tourism industry. We need to rally through the UNWTO to have a wholesome approach to tourism that embodies culture and ensures that the people of the country is part and parcel of their tourism industry‘ said St.Ange
Speaking to the press after the summit, Alain St.Ange said that he hope to work closely with such bodies as PATWA if he succeeds to be elected as SG of the UNWTO. ‘We need to salute the efforts of such organisation as PATWA and recognise the good work they are doing to keep tourism and the good virtues of this great industry visible‘ St.Ange of the Seychelles said.
Also present was Dr. Eng. Walter Mzembi, the candidate of the Republic of Zimbabwe.
