Mekhak Apresyan: Armenian committee for tourism should give strong boost to industry
11.10.2016,
17:11
The new Armenian Committee for Tourism, set to replace the Tourism Department at the Ministry of Economy, should become an instrument for giving a strong boost to this industry, Mekhak Apresyan, the head of the department, said today.
YEREVAN, October 11. /ARKA/. The new Armenian Committee for Tourism, set to replace the Tourism Department at the Ministry of Economy, should become an instrument for giving a strong boost to this industry, Mekhak Apresyan, the head of the department, said today.
In his words, the Committee for Tourism must become the tool that will facilitate the implementation of government objectives in this area.
"Our tourism industry has been developing in difficult conditions, but still, compared to some other countries, we were able to ensure its development", - said Apresyan.
However, according to him, there are new challenges, requiring new mechanisms. "The creation of the committee is not an end in itself. It will have new tasks to help actively develop the industry," - said Apresyan.
In recent years, Armenia has been registering an annual 10% growth in the number of foreign tourists visiting the country, except for last year’s one percent drop, caused by a decline in the number of tourists from Russia.
For this year the government expects the number to grow by 5%, which will translate into 1.4 million tourists. The government has released this year 188 million drams as a support to this industry.
In the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report for 2015, published by the World Economic Forum Armenia was ranked 89th. However, in terms of security it was rated 38th, in terms of health - 48th, in terms of human resources quality Armenia was rated 71st and in terms of tourist service infrastructure 73rd.-0-
In his words, the Committee for Tourism must become the tool that will facilitate the implementation of government objectives in this area.
"Our tourism industry has been developing in difficult conditions, but still, compared to some other countries, we were able to ensure its development", - said Apresyan.
However, according to him, there are new challenges, requiring new mechanisms. "The creation of the committee is not an end in itself. It will have new tasks to help actively develop the industry," - said Apresyan.
In recent years, Armenia has been registering an annual 10% growth in the number of foreign tourists visiting the country, except for last year’s one percent drop, caused by a decline in the number of tourists from Russia.
For this year the government expects the number to grow by 5%, which will translate into 1.4 million tourists. The government has released this year 188 million drams as a support to this industry.
In the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report for 2015, published by the World Economic Forum Armenia was ranked 89th. However, in terms of security it was rated 38th, in terms of health - 48th, in terms of human resources quality Armenia was rated 71st and in terms of tourist service infrastructure 73rd.-0-
