IORA Coastal and Marine Tourism Workshop and The 3rd IORA Tourism Experts Meeting

IORA, as part of its ongoing commitment to foster tourism in the region, will be hosting two events on Tourism on 6-8 May 2018 in Durban, South Africa, that will include; (a) IORA Coastal and Marine Tourism Workshop and (b) the 3rd IORA Tourism Experts Meeting: Establishment of the IORA Tourism Core Group.  

Government officials, marketing authorities, tourism and travel associations, private sector, and/or tourism experts from the 21 IORA Member States and seven Dialogue Partners are expected to attend the two events which are being hosted by the Department of Tourism of the Government of the Republic of South Africa. In addition, on 8 May 2018, IORA delegates will have the opportunity to attend the official opening of the 2018 Africa Travel INDABA, formerly known as the Tourism INDABA - one of the largest tourism marketing events on the African calendar.

The objective of the IORA Coastal and Marine Tourism Workshop will be to provide a platform for IORA Member States to share experiences and best practices related to coastal and marine tourism and identify areas to unlock the tourism potential of the ocean’s economy of the Indian Ocean Region. Coastal and Marine Tourism is a growing area that represents an important contributor to the economy of countries and for generating employment.

With regard to the second event, the aim would be to finalise the Terms of Reference (TOR) for the establishment of the IORA Tourism Core Group while at the same time reflecting on progress made since the Second Tourism Expert’s meeting held in 2015 in Durban, South Africa. This third meeting of Tourism Experts would focus on the commitments made in the IORA Action Plan (2017-2021) under Tourism and where the establishment of the IORA Tourism Core Group was indicated as a short term objective.

South Africa, one of the founding members of the IORA, is currently the Chair of IORA and the theme for its tenure is; ‘Uniting the Peoples of Africa, Asia, Australasia and the Middle East through Enhanced Cooperation for Peace, Stability and Sustainable Development’.