ArmInfo. Armenia has the potential to develop tourism field, Armenia's Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan stated at the meeting with Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Taleb Rifai, the press-service of the Armenian government informs.
The Armenian Prime Minister noted that Armenia can offer various tours and high level services to international tourism market.
"We attach importance to development of tourism in the country and should organize corresponding events for raising tourist attractiveness of Armenia in the world. We are open for cooperation and are ready to take steps for ensuring sustainable development of the field", Karapetyan noted.
According to Karapetyan the given field is one of the government's priorities. He informed that a separate committee authorized for tourism development will be founded in the future. In this light he stressed the importance of cooperation of the committee with international tourism organizations and added that expects assistance from UNWTO in this issue.
Rifai in turn expressed readiness to assist the Armenian government both in this issue and in the issue of training specialists and holding consultations on providing services. Close cooperation between private sector and the state, as well as deepening of regional cooperation will give impetus to the field development, according to the UNWTO Secretary General.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. It is the leading international organization in the field of tourism, which promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.
According to the Tourism Development Department of the Armenian Ministry of Economic Development and Investments, in H1 2016 over 501 thsd travelers visited Armenia (2.4% more than in H1 2015). As compared to the previous year, the outgoing tourism indicator has grown. In H1 2016, as many as 470 thsd residents of Armenia went abroad (1.2% more than in H1 2015).