Restoring Ukraine: DART consolidates support from the EU and the global tourism community
On May 17-18, a landmark event for Ukrainian tourism took place in the city of Lviv – “Recovery Tourism Industry Summit: Integration Restoration Innovations in Hospitality”. National tourism summit, organized by the State Tourism Development Agency of Ukraine (DART) in partnership with the Association of Hotels and Resorts of Ukraine (UHRA).
The event was held within the framework of the EU4Business program, funded by the European Union and the German government.
30 foreign and domestic speakers, 5 panel discussions, more than 7 hours of live broadcast.
This year, the summit, which is being held in Ukraine for the second time, was visited by distinguished foreign guests – the president and CEO of the World Travel and Tourism Council – Julia Simpson, the member of the European Parliament István Uygei and the president of the “Hotel Star Union” Markus Lüthe.
At the opening of the summit, addressing the present representatives of the global and domestic tourism community and people’s deputies, the Head of DART Maryana Oleskiv emphasized that today it is necessary to do everything possible so that the tourism industry of Ukraine is integrated into the European and later into the world system. “There is a lot of work ahead and the support of the most influential figures in the global tourism industry is obvious. In this difficult time, friends are also critically important for us.”
President and CEO of the World Travel and Tourism Council, Julia Simpson, who visited Ukraine for the first time at the invitation of the head of DART, was impressed by the hospitality of Ukrainians and noted that Ukraine has the potential to become one of the greatest tourist discoveries for the world. “You have beautiful nature, culture and history; you have excellent cuisine, an incredible level of hotel service; you also have resorts on the basis of which medical tourism can be developed. All this together makes your country a unique tourist destination. And the resumption of operation of the airport in Lviv will be a great impetus and a direct signal to the world that it is possible to invest in Ukraine. I know many examples of countries that have recovered from similar crises thanks to tourism,” said Ms. Simpson.
Member of the European Parliament Iishtvan Uygei, addressing the audience, expressed his delight at the fact that despite the terrible impact of the war, life in the country is raging and Ukrainians are courageously choosing their freedom and future. “It is already necessary to show foreigners that it is worth coming to Ukraine. Thus, you will be able to attract foreign tourists to directly support the economy of your country. And the European Parliament is ready to help build these bridges between Ukraine and the world tourism market to support your country.”
For almost seven hours, the guests and participants of the summit held a dialogue about how to integrate Ukraine into the European and world tourist space, improve the economy of communities through the sustainable development of tourism in the regions. The guests discussed modern management models of tourist destinations, the creation of a barrier-free environment at tourist locations, as well as the integration of the gastronomic and cultural diversity of our country into the field of hospitality.
The second day of the summit was devoted to a workshop for community representatives, where experts in inclusiveness and accessibility of tourist space, preservation of cultural heritage and authentic architecture talked about the specifics of work in these areas of the industry.
Before the workshops, a tripartite memorandum was signed between the State Tourism Development Agency of Ukraine, the Public Union “Association of Inbound Tour Operators of Ukraine” and the Association of Hotels and Resorts of Ukraine. The signatories volunteered to cooperate in order to restore the competitiveness of the tourism industry of Ukraine and expand the market of quality tourist services.
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The international cooperation program “EU4Business: recovery, competitiveness and internationalization of SMEs” is jointly financed by the European Union and the German government and is implemented by the German federal company Deutsche Gesellschaftfür Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The program is aimed at supporting economic stability, recovery and growth of Ukraine, creating better conditions for the development of Ukrainian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as supporting innovation and exports.More details.
Event partners: To the Ministry of Development of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure of Ukraine, the Lviv Regional Military Administration and the Lviv City Council for their support and assistance in holding the summit.
The content of the publication is the sole responsibility of DART and does not necessarily reflect the position of the European Union and the German government.
