The big bet of tourism – Development perspective with sustainability

The sustainability of tourism was the topic of discussion coordinated by Professor at the London Business School Michalis Iakovidis and was organized in the framework of the 7th Delphi Economic Forum that takes place in Delphi April 6-9 and is under the auspices of SA. of the President of the Republic, Mrs. Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

The Minister of Tourism, Vassilis Kikilias, during his speech stressed that all the infrastructures in the country essentially involve a tourism product, including public works. He noted that a quarter of the revenue that tourism brings to the country must be managed in a specific way that benefits the citizens and the place, while he spoke of a team effort and the willingness of the Ministry for all players to participate in a joint patriotic effort. . Speaking about the balance that must be struck between a sustainable tourism model with growth and jobs and the protection of areas and the avoidance of excesses that their infrastructure can not withstand, he noted that a program is starting in Santorini and Mykonos so that tourism not to exceed the strengths of the islands. Thus, as a first step, a “ceiling” of specific arrivals per day is entered, always in cooperation with the local authorities. “In December 2022 we will fund the joint effort made by the ministry and the private sector and we will measure the results of our effort,” he said in closing.

For his part, the President of SETE Giannis Retsos noted that sustainability is not only about environmental protection but is a multidimensional concept and so we must manage it. He pointed out that since 2019, which was a record year for tourism in our country, SETE opened the discussion on the management of destinations in order to decongest the congested areas and strengthen others. This need arose, as he stressed that there were areas that were very stressed by tourism, making life difficult for residents. “Everyone should be involved in this destination management debate,” he said, adding that a balance must be struck with some areas where much of their revenue comes solely from tourism. He also stressed the need to strengthen private and public infrastructure with new investments but also to plan actions with a view to the future such as the spatial and temporal expansion of tourism. That is, to increase the destinations and the season when tourists visit our country.

The Secretary General of Europa Nostra Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, noted that tourism should be supported and developed, which is of great value for Greece, but at the same time to preserve the beauty, cleanliness and cultural heritage of the place. “You are called to find a balance and move forward,” he said, stressing that the whole of Europe has embraced the effort to achieve sustainable tourism. However, he noted that in some areas residents feel that tourists have taken over the city and this should not happen, as locals not only should not be pressured but should act as hosts as they are the guarantee of its continuity and preservation. beauty of any place.

The President of the Institutional Framework Council of the Hellenic Company, Maro Evangelidou, referred to the guideline report that has been prepared and contains political, scientific and legal elements. Specifically, it elaborates indicators such as water or energy consumption per user in each area, drawing useful conclusions, while also containing suggestions for spatial planning, ie when designing an area, elements such as the finite number of natural resources available must be taken into account. This report, as he stressed, proposes ideas on how the development perspective goes hand in hand with sustainability, while he stressed that there should be cooperation for the next steps and everyone should get away from dogmas.

The discussion was moderated by Michael G. Iakovidis, professor at LSE.