Seychelles recognized as leaders in the world of tourism

On March 14, Frances Cha of CNN gives coverage of a new report, put out earlier this month by the Worl

On March 14, Frances Cha of CNN gives coverage of a new report, put out earlier this month by the World Economic Forum that has ranked which countries roll out the welcome mat to travelers and which give the cold shoulder.

Frances Cha of CNN says that the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2013 has ranked 140 countries according to attractiveness and competitiveness in the travel and tourism industries.

The article should be a wakeup call to every destination with a tourism industry.
The first section of the article is entitled โ€œUnwelcomingโ€ where among the extensive analyses, one of the most interesting rankings was how welcome tourists are in each country, under the category “Attitude of population toward foreign visitors” and she lists the world’s most unfriendly countries, according to the data collected.

Frances Cha of CNN also looked at the strengths and weaknesses of tourism destinations. Frances writes: โ€œThe โ€˜friendlyโ€™ ranking was just one aspect of the report, analyzing each country’s competitiveness in travel and tourism. That competitiveness is โ€˜based on the extent to which they are putting in place the factors and policies to make it attractive to develop the travel and tourism sector.โ€™”

The Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2013, being referred to by Frances Cha, also touches on excellent tourism infrastructure and facilities, on business travel appeal, on sustainable development of natural resources, and on rich cultural resources. These were all among the key factors for countries landing the highest positions in the rankings. Safety/security, underdeveloped infrastructure, and concerns about sustainable development were among the factors bringing down countries’ competitiveness.

Frances Cha of CNN writes that the United States (6th) topped the combined Americas, Singapore (10th) just pushed out Australia and New Zealand to lead the Asia Pacific region, the United Arab Emirates (28th) was the highest performer in the Middle East, and the Seychelles (38th) overtook Mauritius to head Africa.

The Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2013 emphasized the need for continued development in the travel and tourism sector particularly for its role in job creation in a relatively stagnant global economy. The industry currently accounts for one in 11 jobs in the world.

The report used data compiled from the World Economic Forum’s Executive Opinion Survey and hard data from private sources and national and international agencies and organizations such as the ICAO [International Civil Aviation Organization], IATA [International Air Transport Association], UNWTO [UN World Tourism Organization], World Bank/International Finance Corporation, IUCN [International Union for Conservation of Nature], WHO [World Health Organization], and UNESCO [UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization].

Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister for Tourism and Culture has said that the high ranking by Seychelles demonstrates the effort in place by the Seychelles government for the islandsโ€™ tourism industry. โ€œTourism remains the pillar of our countryโ€™s economy. We cannot afford to mess the good running of this key industry. We have been recognized as leaders in the world of tourism because we are committed to work with our industry players to ensure that our tourism industry continues to be consolidated. We also re-evaluate what we do, how we are perceived, and who we move forward to ensure we remain relevant as the sought-after tourism destination,โ€ Minister Alain St.Ange of the Seychelles said.

Seychelles is a founding member of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP).

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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