The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo Batlle, has highlighted the work carried out by tourism professionals to consolidate the Canary Islands brand as a world-class destination and defended the commitment of the tourism sector to overcome complex situations such as the current one.
The Government of the Canary Islands celebrated World Tourism Day this Wednesday, September 27, in an event where tribute was paid to "the women and men who have placed their life project in tourism", as highlighted by the Minister of Tourism and Employment, Jéssica de León, who referred to "all those stories behind the figures."
At the awards ceremony, held at the Tenerife Espacio de las Artes (TEA) museum, the Minister wanted to highlight the workers in a sector "that represents 40% of direct jobs and 35% of the Gross Domestic Product.". In addition, she recalled that the Canary Islands is experiencing a sweet moment as a destination, "with 16 million tourists by the end of 2023 and 19,000 million in revenue."
In his speech, the President of the Canary Islands cited the case of businessman Pedro David Díaz, owner of the Casa Rural Las Vigas, distinguished with the award for Excellence in the Tourism Sector. "An entrepreneur," said Fernando Clavijo, "who has not only been able to protect the environment in which this historic building is located, but also guarantee the dissemination among those who visit us of our rich history and local cultures."
In this area, the President of the Government encouraged the updating of the Canary Islands' tourism offer as a means of accessing new tourist profiles. "We have to be able to respond to the new ways of traveling that characterize European citizens after the pandemic," explained Clavijo, "tourists who are no longer satisfied with packing their bags, getting on a plane and enjoying their holidays away from home, but are looking for unique experiences."
The awards went to Tenerife and Fuerteventura
The awards this year went to Casa Rural Las Vigas, located in Arico (Tenerife), with the award for Excellence in the Tourism Sector; and to the Riu Oliva Beach hotel (Fuerteventura), in the International Projection of the Destination category.
Regarding Casa Rural Las Vigas, De León highlighted the "project, whose owner started 12 years ago in a house with 200 years of antiquity, a building that he rehabilitated, rescuing its heritage value, betting on culture and contributing sustainability policies." In this sense, the Minister of Tourism referred to the importance of rural tourism, "true custodian of identity and heritage in the most depopulated Canary Islands, with fewer opportunities, which is the rural Canary Islands."
In the International Projection of the Destination award, tribute was paid to the 382 families of the workers of the Riu Oliva Beach hotel, explained the Minister of Tourism, "who have not stopped fighting together with their company to place the island of Fuerteventura and the Canary Islands in the world," stressed Jéssica de León.
As the closing of World Tourism Day, the Canarian Minister renewed "the firm commitment to the sector and our commitment to restore the illusion, the desire and the drive to want to work and prosper in our land, assuming challenges such as sustainability, modernization of the regulatory framework and the execution of infrastructures that allow the Canary Islands not to lose competitiveness, accompanying private investment to improve the public tourist space with sustainability criteria. And with training as a tool that improves employability and the quality of employment."