Qatar Tourism Authority hosts UNWTO session on tourism marketing planning

Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) will host a training workshop on tourism marketing planning from January 26 to 28, 2010 at the Millennium Hotel in Doha. The workshop is organized in collaboration with the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

The objective of the workshop is to establish guidelines for preparing tourism marketing and development plans at the national and regional level. Senior marketing representatives of the UNWTO and marketing specialists will lead the sessions emphasizing market research, market strategy, and market segmentation.

“It is recognized that sound marketing and planning is essential to develop and manage sustainable tourism,” said Mr. Ahmed Al Nuaimi, chairman of Qatar Tourism Authority. “The approach must be integrated – balancing marketing objectives with economic, environmental, and socio-cultural factors. This workshop will introduce marketing tools and concepts to the region’s tourism industry professionals, which will help shape the long-term strategy for the region.”

Participants of the workshop will include organizations in the hospitality and services industry in Qatar and across the GCC region including 5- and 4-star hotels, tour operators, events organizers and venues, and important tourist sites, as well as tourism ministers from around the Middle East.

This workshop is part of a series of training plans that have been undertaken by the Qatar Tourism Authority in its quest to further human resource development in the tourism sector. QTA adopted this comprehensive training plan as a result of a UNWTO summit on the challenges of human resources in tourism, which was held in Doha in April 2009. Through such initiatives, Qatar is becoming a hub for the tourism sector in the region.