Tourism stakeholders and media commit to enhance cooperation

TBN Desk —

Tunis :The 4th UNWTO International Conference on ‘ Tourism and Media’ has stressed cooperation between the tourism stakeholders and media for overall development of travel and tourism.

Over 300 participants from twenty countries were represented at the 4th UNWTO International Conference ‘Tourism and the Media’ that took place in Tunis under the patronage of the Ministry of Tourism and Handicrafts of Tunisia and support of CNN  International.

‘The creation of new partnerships between tourism and media is an excellent opportunity for dialogue. Tourism, as does the media, has the noble mission of making people travel around the world, bringing cultures closer together and promoting the values of tolerance and solidarity ,’ said the Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts of Tunisia, Salma Elloumi Rekik.

“Media constitute major stakeholders for the tourism sector, not only in terms of disseminating information, but also with regard to connecting with the public to promote a better understanding of the sector and the principles of sustainable tourism development.” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, opening the Conference.

“Accuracy, responsibility and transparency are the framework in which we, the journalists, should operate,” said Jim Bittermann, CNN anchor and key note speaker at the Conference.

Sanam Shantyaei, from France 24, emphasized that “journalists need to be approached by those working in the tourism sector in an appropriate manner and with adequate resources as media constitutes the main channel to the general public.”

In that sense, the impact of media was underlined by most of the speakers, like Taieb Zahar, Director of the Tunisian magazine ‘Réalités’ who stated that “the work of journalists currently has a great impact in the image and positioning of countries.”

Communicating in times of crisis was also addressed during the Conference with participants stressing the need for professional coverage but also access to information and facilitation of resources from tourism authorities in a timely manner.

Richard Barnes, Editor-in-Chief at Cleverdis gave some recommendations to parties involved in the tourism sector. “Tourism authorities should look to the different channels to reach media, not only through press releases, for instance. If they communicate with the tourism agencies, they will reach also the general public and this will be a great plus for the country,” he said.

As the Conference aimed at fostering a new framework of interaction with the media, a number of recommendations were emphasized through the different debates and exchanges. Among those, “be credible, close, on target, available, transparent, realistic, a facilitator, useful to and respectful of the media angle” were underlined.

“Media is the best partner that you can have, so do not be afraid of the media as journalists are the best catalyzer of your work”, concluded Mr Taleb Rifai, UNWTO Secretary General closing the event.Source : UNWTO

Nov. 18, 2015