Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni participated in the annual international “World Travel and Tourism Council” conference, where she had the opportunity to meet with a series of representatives from the tourism industry. In her statement to APE-MPE regarding the importance of the event and Greek participation, Ms. Kefalogianni emphasized: “This is the largest international conference of the entire tourism industry. Therefore, it is very important for Greece, as one of the top ten countries in tourism, to be present. It is also significant that we participated in a panel dealing with cultural tourism. On how culture is a tourism resource and how it is utilized, mainly for the benefit of local communities. It goes without saying that this is something that Greece and Italy, in particular, share, as we have incredible cultural heritage and great history. All of these, therefore, facilitate our strategy for developing tourism throughout the year and in all regions of the country.
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Referring to the meetings she had at the international conference in Rome, the tourism minister added: “It is significant that we had the opportunity to meet many representatives of the tourism industry. Mainly investors who gave us, if you will, a vote of confidence that Greece currently remains at the top of travelers’ preferences, as well as potential investors. We already have some discussions about new investments that there is interest in making in Greece. In fact, not only in well-known destinations but also with a willingness to discover new destinations in our country, making use of the existing building stock. Through reuse, that is, of old hotels that can, thanks to new investments, take on new life. Something which we very much desire as well”.
Finally, responding to a question from APE-MPE about whether she shares the view of the Italian Senate President who, closing the conference proceedings, emphasized that tourism, by bringing citizens of various countries into contact, can also contribute to achieving peace, Olga Kefalogianni stressed: “I believe that what the President of the Italian Senate essentially wanted to say is what we often repeat ourselves: that tourism and travel create bridges of friendship, that when you travel your horizons open up, you become more tolerant, you understand diversity. I think that in this way yes, tourism can contribute to achieving peace, in the sense that everyone must understand that there can be differences, but there must also be tolerance for these differences”.
