NewsWhore
03-26-2009, 06:20 PM
The president of the National Hotels and Restaurants Association (Asonahores), Haydee Kuret de Rainieri, has challenged the country to work towards improving the quality and competitiveness of the Dominican tourism product. She said there is a need to improve on the 15% repeat visitor figure, adding that more investment is needed in areas where hotels are located and where tourists circulate.
In a speech to the American Chamber of Commerce monthly luncheon audience, she also highlighted that industry competitiveness was hurting. She was critical of the fact that according to the World Economic Forum 2009 report, the country declined to position 67 of 133 countries in tourism competitiveness, compared to ranking 63 in 2008.
The Asonahores president spoke of need for improvement in infrastructure, the hotels themselves, quantity and quality of destination and country promotion, staff training, development of more complementary attractions, and increased safety in tourism destinations.
She called for changes in the tax code to treat tourism services as exports, which would mean a reduction in the value-added ITBIS tax on the industry inputs.
Citing the World Travel and Tourism Council, she says it is expected that as of 2011, the sector will recover the pace of growth now affected by the financial crisis. She forecast that by 2019, tourism would represent US$8 billion in revenue for the country, doubling the present figure of US$4 billion. In 2008, the DR received 3.4 million tourists and the sector represented 14% of the GDP, 20% of investments, 13% of jobs and 18% of exports. She said there are 66,000 hotel rooms in the DR, 15,000 more than the total in 2000, for a 37.5% increase. She pointed out that this number does not include accommodations at the thousands of villas and apartments in tourist destinations.
Kuret de Rainieri said that the development of the nation's tourism potential over the next ten years is an opportunity to create a market in which demand is doubled for agricultural, farm and industrial products, creating 100,000 jobs and incorporating unproductive areas into the nation's development.
See complete speech at http://amcham.org.do/anm/templates/discursos2.asp?... (http://amcham.org.do/anm/templates/discursos2.asp?articleid=85&zoneid=12)
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#3)
In a speech to the American Chamber of Commerce monthly luncheon audience, she also highlighted that industry competitiveness was hurting. She was critical of the fact that according to the World Economic Forum 2009 report, the country declined to position 67 of 133 countries in tourism competitiveness, compared to ranking 63 in 2008.
The Asonahores president spoke of need for improvement in infrastructure, the hotels themselves, quantity and quality of destination and country promotion, staff training, development of more complementary attractions, and increased safety in tourism destinations.
She called for changes in the tax code to treat tourism services as exports, which would mean a reduction in the value-added ITBIS tax on the industry inputs.
Citing the World Travel and Tourism Council, she says it is expected that as of 2011, the sector will recover the pace of growth now affected by the financial crisis. She forecast that by 2019, tourism would represent US$8 billion in revenue for the country, doubling the present figure of US$4 billion. In 2008, the DR received 3.4 million tourists and the sector represented 14% of the GDP, 20% of investments, 13% of jobs and 18% of exports. She said there are 66,000 hotel rooms in the DR, 15,000 more than the total in 2000, for a 37.5% increase. She pointed out that this number does not include accommodations at the thousands of villas and apartments in tourist destinations.
Kuret de Rainieri said that the development of the nation's tourism potential over the next ten years is an opportunity to create a market in which demand is doubled for agricultural, farm and industrial products, creating 100,000 jobs and incorporating unproductive areas into the nation's development.
See complete speech at http://amcham.org.do/anm/templates/discursos2.asp?... (http://amcham.org.do/anm/templates/discursos2.asp?articleid=85&zoneid=12)
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#3)