Proactive and sustainable investment is a milestone target for the industry – Parliamentary Secretary Mario de Marco

Investing in sustainability - a wise option for the benefits of the tourism industry

The Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism in the Office of the Prime Minister, the Hon. Mario de Marco said that the Government’s goal is to ensure that tourism operators continue to achieve price competitiveness by integrating investment that provides the opportunity to reduce on cost cutting elements and by addressing the need to change from old ways of doing business to ones based on cooperation with partners who provide the best service to the industry, at all times.

Dr de Marco was delivering the opening speech at a Conference entitled "Sustainable Tourism - Who is responsible?", organised by the Tourism and Sustainable Development Unit (OPM) in association with the Federation of Tour Operators

Dr de Marco said that the prioritisation on sustainable development portrays a number of challenges to the Maltese tourism product, which need to be viewed as strategic opportunities by tourism operators in their day to day supply chains, purchasing processes and selling mechanisms. These challenges are intrinsically based on a balanced pattern of resource use and aim to meet the present tourists’ needs while preserving the natural, built and human environment.

The Parliamentary Secretary stated that the current international economic crisis is undeniably affecting consumer trends and the purchasing power in every sphere of life, inclusive of which are the annual consumer trends of travelling and tourism. He insisted that in this scenario, it is fundamental to outline that over the coming years, we need to move forward and to overcome such economic challenges by ensuring that Malta’s tourism product remains highly competitive and also to ensure that price competitiveness remains a central feature for all tourism enterprises; adding that in overcoming these challenges, we have to ensure that we apply established principles of sustainability, thus making our tourism industry more conscious of its responsibilities.

He referred to the aim of the conference as being that of providing the opportunity to tourism enterprises to reap the benefits of responsible tourism investment, by guaranteeing quality services, efficiency, strategic and profitable long-term growth of the tourism industry.

Government’s policy for the tourism industry is highly linked to the principle of sustainable development and to the need of providing support towards tourism enterprises in the implementation of a responsible operations policy. Taking a leaf from the definition of sustainability itself, sustainable tourism is also defined as a process which meets the needs of the present tourists and host communities whilst protecting and enhancing needs in the future.

“It is our aim, both as government, as well as through the Malta Tourism Authority, to constantly encourage private enterprise operating in tourism-related industries to implement projects based on forward planning, proactive and strategic thinking. The recently announced Grant Scheme for tourism projects by enterprises, is making €10 million of Structural Funds available to the private sector, thus providing co-financing for projects aimed at achieving such standards. In this way, the private sector is being invited to benefit from the strategic long term growth of the industry,” added Dr de Marco.

He concluded by asserting that proactive and sustainable investment is a milestone target for the industry to grow and to compete successfully in present and future economic circumstances. Investing in sustainability is a wise option for the benefits of the industry itself, but most outstandingly for us and for generations to come.