PATA commits to ‘Next Gen’ Action at its conference
Kuala Lumpur: Pacific- Asia Travel conference urged the Asia-Pacific countries to work collectively for overall development of tourism in the region.
The Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Bin Mohd. Yassin, declared the Pacific Asia Travel Association’s (PATA) 2012 Annual Conference open on April 21 at the The Royale Chulan, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
In his address, he reminded that expectations for global tourism arrivals are 1 billion for 2012 and 1.8 billion for 2013. He suggested that Asia will have the largest growth due to the unique sights that Asia-Pacific nations have to offer.
The Deputy PM said he was pleased that this was the 4th annual conference to be held in Malaysia since 1972, and he had the pleasure of attending all of them. He congratulated Dr. Ng Yen Yen, Malaysia’s Minister of Tourism, for her passion about tourism and for receiving the PATA Life Membership award from PATA’s Chairman Hiran Cooray at the opening of the conference.
Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen, Malaysia’s Minister of Tourism, delivered the welcome address and said the 24.7 million arrivals in Malaysia in 2011, makes tourism the second-largest contributor to the country’s national income.
PATA CEO Martin J Craigs committed the association to a four-year phase of “Next Generation” action to underpin the 61-year old travel body”s relevance in the digital age. The CEO said aligned advocacy, mobile technology, business building events, and crisis management readiness would define the association”s new operational mindset, which will be formally called PATA Next Gen..
Craigs said : “PATA Next Gen is ageless, neither old nor young. It is a state of mind, a commitment to speed, relevance, informality and getting things done on behalf of our members who want to build and defend their business in an increasingly competitive marketplace.”
The CEO cited PATAmPOWER, the association”s new mobile platform for integrated travel intelligence, as a major proof point in PATA Next Gen delivery. PATAmPower, which formally launches today, presents the latest travel industry insights and statistics in a user-friendly visual format that PATA members can access on their mobile devices 24/7, as long as they have an internet connection.
The PATA Annual Conference has attracted a total number of 618 delegates including PATA members and tourism professionals from across the Asia Pacific travel industry. Of the 618 registered ,there were 330 international delegates, 288 local delegates and 107 journalists. Together they represented 38 countries and regions, along with more than 188 organisations.
Under the theme “Building the Business Beyond Profits”, the Conference addressed a number of issues including the need for sustainable tourism practices, socially responsible new business models, emerging markets, crisis management, new technology and the impact of ASEAN Economic Cooperation (due in 2015) on the tourism economy.
PATA also held the PATA Annual General Meeting, the PATA Chapter Colloquium, the PATA Board & Category Committee meetings, the 2012 PATA Gold Awards, and PATA Foundation fund raising activities, all at the same venue. PATA Youth Tourism Forum took place on April 18 at Taylor”s University, Lakeside Campus in Kuala Lumpur.
