Armenian Rural and Ecotourism Have Great Potential To Develop: Experts
17.09.2010,
16:56
Armenian rural and ecotourism have a great potential to develop, Zhana Galian, head of the Ecotourism Association said today.
YEREVAN, September 16, /ARKA/. Armenian rural and ecotourism have a great potential to develop, Zhana Galian, head of the Ecotourism Association said today.
Speaking at a news conference she said although cultural-historical tourism is considered the priority direction in Armenia, ecotourism has proved in the last ten years that it can also generate incomes. She said ecotourism will expand dramatically if rural population is explained all its benefits.
‘When rural population realizes that nature, especially pristine nature can generate incomes, it will do everything to protect it and care about it,’ she said, adding that ecotourism is also an ideology that can be used to solve environmental problems. In her opinion, the authorities in charge of this sector need to develop an aggressive policy.
“We need to understand what we should do to make ecotourism bring incomes to the government and private sector and not to endanger our nature,’ she said.
Zara Amatuni, a press officer for the National Competitiveness Fund, said the Fund is developing now four tourist directions – the so-called Southern Axis, Northern Axis, Circle Axis embracing the territory of Lake Sevan and the Central Axis encompassing Yerevan, the histrocial town of Etchmiadzin and Zvartnots temple. She said the focus now is on the Southern Axis that extends from Noravank monastery in Vayots Dzor region to Goris, that has a large basis to organize both rural and ecotourism.
Zara Amatuni said also Armenia has good chances to develop culinary tourism, a variety of rural tourism. There are now 12 organizations in the country dealing with ecotourism. -0-
Speaking at a news conference she said although cultural-historical tourism is considered the priority direction in Armenia, ecotourism has proved in the last ten years that it can also generate incomes. She said ecotourism will expand dramatically if rural population is explained all its benefits.
‘When rural population realizes that nature, especially pristine nature can generate incomes, it will do everything to protect it and care about it,’ she said, adding that ecotourism is also an ideology that can be used to solve environmental problems. In her opinion, the authorities in charge of this sector need to develop an aggressive policy.
“We need to understand what we should do to make ecotourism bring incomes to the government and private sector and not to endanger our nature,’ she said.
Zara Amatuni, a press officer for the National Competitiveness Fund, said the Fund is developing now four tourist directions – the so-called Southern Axis, Northern Axis, Circle Axis embracing the territory of Lake Sevan and the Central Axis encompassing Yerevan, the histrocial town of Etchmiadzin and Zvartnots temple. She said the focus now is on the Southern Axis that extends from Noravank monastery in Vayots Dzor region to Goris, that has a large basis to organize both rural and ecotourism.
Zara Amatuni said also Armenia has good chances to develop culinary tourism, a variety of rural tourism. There are now 12 organizations in the country dealing with ecotourism. -0-
