Minister Angelkova holds work meeting with Albania’s ambassador in our country

The Minister of Tourism, Nikolina Angelkova, met the extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of Albania in Bulgaria, H. E. Kiryako Kureta, and discussed with him the opportunities to expand mutual cooperation in the sector. In 2017 over 34 000 Albanian tourists visited Bulgaria, ranking that country 27^th in terms of our international visitors. The two pointed out, however, that the opportunities are much bigger because our peoples and countries still do not know each other well in terms of history, culture, and tourism potential. Therefore, the upward trend in the two-way tourism flow is a fact.

Minister Angelkova stressed that one of the priorities of Bulgaria’s presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2018 are the Western Balkans integration and the economic prosperity of countries in that part of Europe. This may also be achieved with input from tourism, which is reporting promising results in trans-border partnership, she made clear.

Nikolina Angelkova announced that the Ministry of Tourismis ready to initiate very soon a meeting of the tourism ministers from the region’s countries and the setting up of an international task group to create a common Balkan route. The initiative will focus on promoting the peninsula countries on common markets, including remote ones, she explained.

Ambassador Kureta supported the idea, stating that his country would also joint such a meeting, which would promote tourism and economic contacts, the impetus having been provided already by the successful Sofia meeting of the ministers responsible for tourism, entitled „Tourismand Economic Growth“ within the framework of the Bulgarian presidency of the EU Council. He also stated readiness to also set up a bilateral joint committee to share experience in the sector.

Minister Angelkova recalled that our country will host in November 2018 the 2^ndInternational Congress on World Civilizations and Ancient Routes jointly with the UN’s World Tourism Organization. She extended an invitation, via the ambassador, to the Albanian Minister of Tourism and the Environment, Blendi Klosi, to become involved in the forum and expressed her hope that bilateral contacts in the sector will develop upwards and at sustainable pace.