| | | Business News | May 2009
Mexico Takes Tourism Very Seriously TravelVideo.tv go to original
Tourism is one of the main drivers of the Mexican economy. The Mexican tourism ministry announced a series of measures, to be implemented by the Mexican federal government, to reboost Mexico’s tourism sector, protect its industry and jobs, and maintain air traffic to the different destinations of the country.
“We designed an action plan for investment with three main goals: the first one is to protect manufacturing and employment; the second one is to maintain air traffic between tourist spots; and the third one concerns the reestablishment of Mexico as a main tourist destination,” said Rodolfo Elizondo, Minister of Tourism.
The measures include: the development of a temporary support program for jobs within the tourism industry; mechanisms allowing to maintain the air traffic required for the tourism destinations; minimal decrease in the number and frequencies of flights to those cities; and the creation of a fund of 1.2 billion pesos to reposition Mexico on the international tourism scene. This measure will be achieved by means of a national and international promotion campaign as well as public relations efforts.
Moreover, Mexico’s Health Minister José Ángel Córdova said that no case of the swine flu has been confirmed in the main sun destinations of the country, such as Puerto Vallarta, Cozumel, Los Cabos, Mazatlán, and Zihuatanejo. Those places remain secure for national and international travellers.
The international Health organizations congratulate and encourage the initiatives of the Mexican federal government. Just recently, UNWTO recognized the efforts of the Mexico Government for having confronted “the appearance of the A(H1N1) virus in a serious and responsible” manner and declared thatMexico’s response could be considered as a benchmark.
Moreover, UNWTO underlines that until now, the WHO is against sealing the borders and restricting on travel. Past experiences have shown that such measures could not stop the spreading of a virus. In addition, of course, such measures have enormous impacts on the local economy.
At the press conference on Monday, May 11, the Minister of Tourism added that the campaign will be coordinated by the Ministry of Tourism in accordance with the Mexican government, PROMEXICO (organization mandated to consolidate the participation of Mexico in the international economy) and the Mexico Tourism Board (MTB).
Rodolfo Elizondo also stated that; “We will work in three main fronts: politics, communication and image, and promotion. This will allow us to properly attend to our main audiences, namely foreign government, international organizations, investors and commercial partners from all sectors, tour operators, hotels, travel agencies and airlines, as well as communication media and consumers.” |
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