Thursday, June 2 2022 20:39

ArmInfo.RA Deputy Prime Minister Hambardzum Matevosyan took part today in the opening of the 67th session of the UNWTO Commission for Europe, which is being held in Yerevan.

As the press service of the RA Government reports, the event was also  attended by the Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization  Zurab Pololikashvili, the Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan  Kerobyan, the Deputy Minister of Tourism of Greece Sofia Zacharaki  and others.  Welcoming the participants of the session, Deputy Prime  Minister Matevosyan stated with joy that the steps taken by Armenia  in the sphere were highly appreciated by the member states, thanks to  which Armenia was elected a member of the Executive Council for the  period of 2021-2025 during the 66th session of the Commission for  Europe in Athens last year.

Touching upon the policy pursued by Armenia in the sphere of tourism,  Hambardzum Matevosyan noted that the Government vigilantly follows  the events and programs implemented in the sphere of tourism,  applying the best experience in its domestic policies and strategies.

According to the Deputy Prime Minister, the coronavirus pandemic that  challenged the whole world in 2020 was not only a deep healthcare  crisis, but also a severe challenge for the world economy. "The  sphere of tourism, as one of the most dynamically developing branches  of the economy, did not bypass this catastrophe. As a result of the  pandemic, tourism in Armenia is also one of the most affected  sectors. However, due to the flexible state policy in the field, the  tourism sector in the country is on the way to recovery", the Deputy  PM emphasized, adding that only through joint efforts it will be  possible to return to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for  Sustainable Development.

"We must learn lessons, transform the sphere in order to be better  prepared for further undesirable crises. Today it is the duty of all  of us to unite our efforts, to use all the levers and tools given to  us to heal the sphere, to promote the role of tourism in achieving  the Sustainable Development Goals," Hambardzum Matevosyan said,  reaffirming the commitment of the Republic of Armenia to effectively  cooperate with all UNWTO member states and stakeholders to achieve  common goals aimed at the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for  Sustainable Development.  Earlier, at the 66th session in Athens,  Armenia was elected a member of the Executive Board of the  organization for 2021-2025.

According to the RA Statistical Committee, 870,308 tourists visited  Armenia in 2021, which is 2.4-fold higher than a year ago (against a  decline of 80.2% in 2020). But even with such growth, it was not  possible to restore the pre-Covid level of tourist flow.

Mostly citizens of the Russian Federation preferred to organize their  holidays in Armenia, - 350.5 thousand tourists (an increase of  2.5-fold over the year), Iran - 91.1 thousand tourists (an increase  of 5-fold), Georgia - 70.6 thousand tourists (an increase of 23. 5%),  USA - 31.6 thousand tourists (an increase of 5.4-fold), Ukraine -  22.3 thousand tourists (an increase of 3.5-fold), India - 17.9  thousand tourists (an increase of 6.2- fold), France - 14.3 thousand  tourists (an increase of 4.9-fold), Germany - 11.9 thousand tourists  (an increase of 5.7-fold), the Netherlands - 7.5 thousand tourists  (an increase of 3.6-fold), Belarus - 7.2 thousand tourists (an  increase of 3.1-fold).