Rovinj, (MINA-BUSINESS) – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) believes that the Western Balkan governments need to invest more in tourism and to work on amending legislation in order to eliminate barriers and create the climate that is more conducive to the development of this sector.
The Communication Officer of the RCC’s Tourism Development and Promotion Project, Nikola Gaon, has said that, according to the statistics available in the region, the contribution of tourism to the gross domestic product is more than five percent. Its contribution to employment is at the same level, while indirect effects of the tourism industry exceed 14 percent.
“If we look as the region as a whole, the governments invest an average of two percent of their respective budgets in tourism,” Gaon told Mina-business agency, adding that the investments in the development of tourism, as a sector that has been growing for the last ten years, should increase on the basis of certain policies.
Presenting the Tourism Development and Promotion Project at 2018 Weekend Media Festival in Rovinj, he said that the efforts should be made to eliminate barriers to the development of tourism by changing policies and legislation.
The budget of the Tourism Development and Promotion Project, implemented by RCC, is €5 million, which will be used to develop joint tourism products of this region.
The project, which is funded by the European Union, will award €1.62 million in grants for the improvement of infrastructure and quality of service for the regional cultural and adventure tourism routes.
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