Minister St Ange to address World Routes Conferences 2012 |02 October 2012

The World Routes Conference 2012 will run from today (September 29) to October 2.

Being the golden triangle that encompasses tourism authorities, airlines and airports, World Routes 2012 will also be seeing the participation of the Seychelles Tourism Board, Air Seychelles and the Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority.

Tourism remains a volatile industry and when coupled with the economic difficulties of some key European countries that have been traditional tourist source markets for many destinations, significant strategic decisions have had to be taken to ensure that new strategies be developed and new intelligent partnerships instigated.

As one of the personalities responsible for launching a new regional organisation for the Indian Ocean Islands known as the Vanilla Islands, Minister St Ange is focusing his address on the fundamentals of regional cooperation. 

With the notion that the “Whole” is greater than the sum of its parts, the Vanilla Islands collaboration will ensure that the Indian Ocean region is strongly positioned as a tourism region with a difference.

He was also instrumental with two other tourism professionals to launch the ICTP (International Council for Tourism Partners) to open the door for tourism organisations to have a say in world tourism matters.

Today the ICTP has some 400 members from the four corners of the world.

These two organisations are keeping tourism in focus on a regional and international level.
Minister St Ange, who is also the current President of the Indian Ocean Vanilla Islands regional organisation, said he appreciates the fact that the World Routes recognises the importance of regional cooperation and have invited him to address this year’s World Routes forum. 

“Seychelles is committed in playing its part in the consolidation of our region, alone we are but dots in the ocean, but together these dots become as important as full stops are in a paragraph.

As the minister responsible for tourism in one of the smallest countries at this World Routes Forum, I do appreciate being accorded the opportunity to show what Seychelles is doing in the consolidation of its tourism industry,” said Minister St Ange.

Seychelles was recently host to the successful Routes Africa 2012 held in July. For the World Routes 2012, the islands have been shortlisted for the Best Tourism Authority Award.