'Tourism will provide social prosperity'

Ismail Mimoun Algeria - Hussein Bou Salah The Minister of Tourism and Handcraft Ismail Mimoun confirmed the necessity of upgrading the quality of tourism services in line with global developments taking place in this area.Mimoun in an interview with Arabstoday on the 50th anniversary of Algerian independence examined the achievements of his sector since independence, he reviewed future prospects noting that improving Algerian tourism and entering the global market calls for improvement of tourism services to be able to make high quality offers in International tourism markets.Arabstoday: After independence, Algeria saw stages of prosperity and recession in the tourism sector, how do you assess these stages and what are the lessons learned from them?Ismail Mimoun: Immediately after independence in 1962, the first Ministry of Tourism, Youth and Sports appeared which shows the state’s special care of the sector. Tourism reached its best stages in the seventies in Algeria where Algeria became one of the most important promising destinations throughout the Mediterranean. There was an increase in the flow of tourism due to the quality of the offers that was made to the tourism markets.The high return of Algerian Tourism in this period was not the result of chance but came as a result of the scheme of improving tourism which was adopted in 1966. This scheme led to the completion of the largest tourism vehicles and hotel establishments along the coastline, hill areas and the large south, it also led to inaugurating representatives of the tourism abroad. In addition to the establishment of an effective configuration system through the opening of the National High School of Hospitality at Balawrasa and the two centers of Bou Saada and Tizi Ouzou which allowed the emergence of a genuine culture of tourism. But from the mid-eighties tourism in Algeria began to lose its success and beauty and pulled back on itself and away from the professionalism in the absence of a clear vision for development, enhancements and changes that have occurred in the receptive and domestic tourism. In addition to the state's decision then to freeze investment in tourist structures and the decline in the quality of public hotels due to the lack of modernisation and repair. The main lesson that can be drawn from this experience is that Algeria was a tourist destination that has the cultural potential and therefore the chance to revive the glories of Algerian tourism. Regaining Algerian tourism and improving it to the extent that would make it a popular destination throughout the Mediterranean is not something impossible but became a target in the presence of the political will to promote this sector and approach work that is ambitious and realistic at the same time."AT: The statistics of the World Tourism Organization confirms that this sector has become a growing source of wealth and growth in the world, a key factor in the economies of countries, especially in the Mediterranean; does it occupy the same importance in Algeria?IM: "Experts have already confirmed that the year 2012 will witness the achievement of a billion tourists across the world after their number reached 980 million tourists in 2011 in spite of the repercussions of the economic crisis that hit the world in recent years. Future studies suggest that the international tourist flow will reach 1.4 billion tourists in early 2020. Also one in 10 new jobs in the world are being created in the tourism sector, this activity is effectively contributing in the financial balances of many countries. The majority of countries in the world regardless of their political and economic orientation include tourism among their priorities in development plans. Tourism in the world has changed from being just a recreational activity of limited economic efficiency into a real industry. It has become one of the largest global industries alongside the automotive industry. Algeria will follow the same approach so that the development of the tourism sector is not a choice but an obligation imposed by aspirations of our country to take advantage of all its energies and its potentials to support economic growth and social prosperity.In addition to that, how can the idea of Algeria being on the sidelines of the development of tourism in the world be accepted? The huge economic impact it has, while our country has the best resources to take advantage of in order to makes it the best tourist destination and alternative of the Mediterranean Sea. All these factors make me stress that the tourism sector today is actually the subject of special attention by the highest authorities in the country that aim to build a strong economy based on the diversification of exports.AT: the tourism sector witnesses continuous growth since the approval of the Government to create a guiding plan for tourism in 2008. What are the outlines of this plan? IM: the guiding plan has already been prepared and approved by the government in 2008 as a reference framework for government policy to develop tourism in Algeria to 2030. The plan aims to provide a comprehensive and clear vision to achieve the goal of building a tourist destination that is able to impose itself on the level of the regional and global tourist map and meet the needs of the citizens of entertainment and holidays.AT: Immediately after your declarations at the head of the sector in 2010, you declared that your priorities are in the trilogy of investment. What are the main achievements in these areas?IM: in the beginning I want to acknowledge that receptive tourism and domestic tourism sector strategy are at the same level of priority. The developments that are known to the world and the Mediterranean region recently demonstrated the limited dependence on receptive intensive tourism variables are affected by economy and security. This leads us to consider the development of domestic tourism.