Bulgaria was invited as observer at the meeting of the ministers of tourism in G20 format

Over the past ten years Bulgaria has marked about 40% growth in foreign tourists and our main priority is to ensure the sustainability of these results, said minister Nikolina Angelkova at the meeting of the ministers of tourism in G20 format, which was held in Beijing. She was invited to make a statement during the official opening of the discussion and to take part in a capacity of observer country. The forum was opened by the vice prime minister of the People’s Republic of China Wan Yang.

“Political will is key to ensuring sustainable development in the sector at national and international levels. Tourism has demonstrated that it is one of the most resilient economic sectors, even in crisis conditions, and due attention should be paid to it“, minister Angelkova pointed out. In her words, with the establishment of a separate Ministry of Tourism in Bulgaria the government underscored the importance and commitment to its problems and priorities. According to data of the World Travel and Tourism Council, the total input of tourism and related economic activities to global GDP  in 2015 is over 7 trillion USD or 9.8% of GDP. For Europe, this indicator is over 1.7 trillion EUR  or 9.6% of GDP. In terms of Bulgaria, tourism is one of the leading structurally relevant sectors in the economy. Again based on WTTC data, the total input of tourism and related industries to the country’s GDP in 2015 is over 10.5 billion BGN or about 13% of GDP.

In addition, minister Angelkova took part as a lecturer in the First World Conference on Tourism for Development, which was held in the Chinese capital. The event was opened by the prime minister of the People’s Republic of China Li Keqiang and the UN World Tourism Organisation Secretary General Taleb Rifai.  In her address minister Angelkova highlighted the importance of local administrations and regional marketing for the sustainable development of tourist destinations. “We have designated nine marketing regions in the territory of Bulgaria in order to present better the uniqueness of each region and the specialized forms of tourism it can offer”, Nikolina Angelkova said. She noted that in practice the country can offer everything to tourists and it is essential to put the focus on competitive segments in order to foster demand and make it more visible on international tourism market. The forum was moderated by CNN International anchor Richard Quest, who is a long-standing partner of the World Tourism Organisation. Among the invited panelists were HRH Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, chairperson of the Tourism Committee and the National Board of Saudi Arabia, the minister of tourism and antiquities of Jordan Nayef Al-Fayez, the minister of tourism of Kenya Najib Balala, the minister of tourism of South Africa Derek Andre Hanekom, etc.

During her visit to China minister Angelkova and the minister of tourism of the Republic of Argentina Jose Gustavo Santos signed a Memorandum of Understanding in the field of tourism. She also had meetings with the chairman of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) Jindzao Li, with the Secretary of State of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport of Great Britain John Whittingdale, with the minister of tourism and antiquities of Jordan Nayef Al-Fayez, HRH Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, chairperson of the Tourism Committee and the National Board of Saudi Arabia, with the president of the Secretariat  of Tourism of Mexico Enrique de la Madrid  Cordero, with the minister of tourism of Indonesia Arief Yahya, with the minister of tourism of Venezuela  Marleny Contreras  and with the minister of tourism of South Africa  Derek Andre Hanekom.