BY ABDUREZAK MOHAMMED
SEMERA – Taking the current and inconsistent situations of the world into account, Ethiopia should formulate a strong economic diplomacy policy and strategy alongside tourism policy for its tourism development, said the Ethiopian Institute of Foreign Affairs.
Addressing a day- long policy dialogue forum held yesterday under the theme: “The role of economic diplomacy for the development of tourism sector,” Institute Director-General Desalegn Ambaw (PhD) stated that although increasing the number of domestic tourists is important for the development of the tourism sector, a lot needs to be done to increase the number of foreign tourists, especially in order to alleviate the country’s foreign exchange shortage.
The tourism industry, commonly known as the “the smokeless industry”, serves as an alternative economic base for many countries, he said, adding that Ethiopia has not been able to utilize its potential in tourism sector for various reasons.
“If we use our man-made and natural resources properly, the tourism sector can be an economic basis for our country by creating job opportunities, earning foreign exchange, and ensuring improvement of nation’s production,” he indicated.
Clear policy and related implementation strategies will play the lion’s share even though there are other things that need to be done to make this dream reality, as to him. He further stated that it requires the cooperation of all stakeholders to enable the country’s tourism sector to contribute to national economic growth.
He added that the government will play a significant role in designing and implementing appropriate policies and strategies, maintaining peace and security, modernizing the infrastructure and services and making them more accessible to visitors. In this regard, private sector’s role is quite significant.
Desalegn insisted that the researchers should not only conduct in-depth research on tourism diplomacy and other issues related to the development of the tourism sector, but also make their research findings accessible to policy makers for effective implementation.
The role of advertising agents, artists, elders, and cultural ambassadors is also significant, he reiterated. The forum was attended by federal level state officials, scholars and researchers, tourism sector professionals, and other invited guests, and various research papers were presented at the event.
The Ethiopian Herald July 1/2022
