International Council of Tourism Partners signs MOU with RETOSA

HALEIWA, Hawaii, USA; BRUSSELS, Belgium; VICTORIA, Seychelles – The International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) is pleased to announced the Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa (RETOSA) has joined the alliance. Recently, ICTP held its general meeting and RETOSA held its board meeting in early July in Seychelles. Leaders from both organizations took this opportunity to meet and in so doing, signed an MOU, with RETOSA joining ICTP as a partner association.

The Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa (RETOSA) is a SADC institution that brings together the 14 fascinating countries of the Southern part of Africa – Angola, Botswana, DR Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

ICTP Chairman Juergen T. Steinmetz said: “RETOSA is a leading organization for cooperation in Africa with a focus also on tourism. ICTP has a strong and growing membership from Africa. It was a logical step to propose a cooperative effort between the two organizations.

“ICTP is building to critical mass and general recognition by year end of 2012 and are putting in place web-based support and service systems at tourismpartners.org and greengrowth2050.com. RETOSA will be invited to join with ICTP at upcoming events in Africa.

As part of the agreement, RETOSA plans to encourage its members to become ICTP destination members, which will allow ICTP to support those destinations as well. In addition, both organizations will share web portal links on their respective websites.

RETOSA believes that sustainably-developed tourism offers the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries the opportunity to drive economic growth, boost job creation, increase export earnings, attract investment, and alleviate poverty. This fits right in with ICTP’s mission for quality and green tourism growth.

For more information about RETOSA, go to www.retosa.co.za .

ABOUT ICTP

The International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) is a grassroots travel and tourism coalition of global destinations committed to quality service and green growth. The ICTP logo represents the strength in collaboration (the block) of many small communities (the lines) committed to sustainable oceans (blue) and land (green).

ICTP engages communities and their stakeholders to share quality and green opportunities including tools and resources, access to funding, education, and marketing support. ICTP advocates sustainable aviation growth, streamlined travel formalities, and fair coherent taxation.

ICTP supports the UN Millennium Development Goals, the UN World Tourism Organization’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and a range of programs that underpin them. The ICTP alliance is represented in Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA; Brussels, Belgium; Bali, Indonesia; and Victoria, Seychelles. ICTP membership is available to qualified destinations free of charge. Academy membership features a prestigious and selected group of destinations.

ICTP has members in Anguilla; Aruba; Bangladesh; Belgium, Belize; Canada; Caribbean; China; Croatia; The Gambia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; India; Indonesia; Iran; Korea (South); La Reunion (French Indian Ocean); Malaysia; Malawi; Mauritius; Mexico; Morocco; Nicaragua; Nigeria; Northern Mariana Islands (USA Pacific Island Territory); Sultanate of Oman; Pakistan; Palestine; Rwanda; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; South Africa; Sri Lanka; Sudan; Tajikistan; Tanzania; Trinidad & Tobago; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe; and from the US: Arizona, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Missouri, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.

Partner associations include: African Bureau of Conventions; African Chamber of Commerce Dallas/Fort Worth; Africa Travel Association; Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association; Cultural and Environment Conservation Society; DC-Cam (Cambodia); Euro Congres; Hawaii Tourism Association; International Delphic Council (IDC); International Institute for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT); International Organization of Electronic Tourism Industry (IOETI); Positive Impact Events, Manchester, UK; RETOSA: Angola – Botswana – DR Congo – Lesotho – Madagascar – Malawi – Mauritius – Mozambique – Namibia – South Africa – Swaziland – Tanzania – Zambia- Zimbabwe; Routes, SKAL International; Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality (SATH); Sustainable Travel International (STI); The Region Initiative, Pakistan; The Travel Partnership Corporation; vzw Reis-en Opleidingscentrum, Gent, Belgium; as well as university and educational institute partners.

For more information, go to: www.tourismpartners.org .