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The informal meeting of the European Union (EU) Tourism Ministers, which concluded yesterday in the Belgian town of La Hulpe, was attended by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Mr. Costas Koumis, who returns to Cyprus today.
The Belgian Presidency chose as the main topic of discussion the two main axes that currently concern Europe and have been set as priorities for tourism. The need for EU Member States to accelerate the processes towards the dual transition of European tourism, i.e. towards the green transition and the digital transition, with emphasis on skills issues, was extensively discussed.
During his interventions, the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Costas Koumis, presented the initiatives and actions of the Deputy Ministry of Tourism related to the aforementioned axes. In addition, he referred to the actions of the Ministry of Tourism that fall within the framework of sustainable development and digital transition. He also referred to the circular economy plan promoted by the Deputy Ministry of Tourism, the incentive plans promoted by Cyprus, again through the Deputy Ministry of Tourism, towards the tourism industry and other directions.
He also stated that the EU should take into account the specific characteristics of its Member States, especially island tourist destinations, aiming at the adoption of specific support measures.
In addition, he pointed out the need to further link EU policies with the real needs of the tourism sector. He placed particular emphasis on the need for further training of staff in the tourism sector, which could be strengthened through cooperation actions between Member States, such as, for example, strengthening cooperation between state higher education schools, especially those promoting vocational programmes.
In relation to the shortage of human resources, an issue of concern for tourism at a pan-European level, Koumis said that the EU should promote the creation of an online recruitment platform for tourism professionals. At the same time, he stressed the need for the alignment of the private sector in order to achieve the EU's objectives.
Finally, the Deputy Minister of Tourism had separate meetings with his Bulgarian counterpart Ms Zaritsa Dinkova and his Maltese counterpart Mr. Clayton Bartolo and discussed issues concerning tourism in the two countries.
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