BELARUSIAN ECONOMY & TRADE

The Swedish Institute for Cultural Development has approved Vitebsk region with a proposal to develop a joint tourist project “Western Dvina River,” Vladimir Sinkovets of Vitebsk Region Administration informed.

The project is intended to get foreign tourists familiar with the history and the sights of the territories, where once laid the way “from the Varangians to the Greeks” – from Scandinavia to the South down the river Western Dvina.

The major condition put forward by the Swedish side is that two towns – Vitebsk and Polotsk – should participate in the project. Experts point out Swedes are mush interested in the home town of Marc Chagal, the common history of the Slavic tribes and the Vikings.

Taking part in the project will be Vitebsk’s twin city Daugavpils of Latvia.

The project will be financed by Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).

15/02/2005

Belarus to reorganize tourism in 1H ’05 to legalize shadow profits

MINSK, Feb 15 (Prime-Tass) -- Belarus plans to reorganize its tourist sector in the first half of 2005 to regulate the activity of travel agencies and “shed light” on shadow profits, Sergei Doronin, the head of the tourism department with the Sports and Tourism Ministry, told reporters Tuesday.

“The ministry believes it is time to establish order in this sector. Of 694 agencies only about 500 regularly submit the results of their performance to relevant state agencies. Many of them report zero turnover, but continue working and renting their offices,” Doronin said.

He also noted that in the tourist sector it is almost impossible to lose a license, however bad the violations committee by an agency might be.

According to Doronin, it is necessary to legalize all profits received by the companies of the sector “leaving only those who are ready to create the national tourist product and support the state.”

It is planned to create a national tour operator, which will determine market participants, form the market and protect domestic agencies from foreign operators.

“We plan to introduce new requirements for travel agencies by late February. They will be used as criteria for receiving licenses for travel business, however, it is too early to speak about the criteria in detail,” Doronin said.

The reorganization of the tourist sector will be in line with a new version of the law on tourism and package of standard acts, including addenda to the licensing provision and excursion business.

Tourist services account for only 0.5% of the total paid services, and 0.06% of GDP.

14/02/2005

Belarus’ parl plans to ratify charter of World Tourism Organization

MINSK, Feb 14 (Prime-Tass) -- The lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament, the House of Representatives, plans to ratify this spring the charter of the World Tourism Organization. The commission for international affairs and relations with the CIS recommended including the relevant issue in the agenda for the spring session, Prime-Tass correspondent reports.

“Belarus joined the World Tourism Organization in September 2004, but only after the national parliament ratifies its charter Belarus will become a full member,” Sports and Tourism Minister Yury Sivakov said.

According to him, the World Tourism Organization will help Belarus develop its tourist sector. “We need consulting assistance to make the tourist sector profitable. We are lagging behind many countries of the world now, and need to amend the existing law on tourism,” the minister said.

The charter of the World Tourism Organization was adopted in 1970. The organization has 144 member countries.

Belarus’ nonrecurrent contribution to the World Tourism Organization floating capital amounted to 1,309 euros. The country’s annual contribution is at 26,195 euros. End

Minister says Belarus to reorganize tourist sector soon

MINSK, Feb 14 (Prime-Tass) -- Belarus plans to reorganize its tourist sector soon Sports and Tourism Minister Yury Sivakov told a commission of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament, the House of Representatives, Monday.

“We will have a national tour operator, which will determine market participants and form the market. Besides, we will need an insurance fund to pay the damages. We are getting many complaints now,” Sivakov said.

He believes the reorganization of the sector will help many travel agencies to come out from the shadow.

At the same time, the minister believes the reorganization process needs care, because all travel agencies will be involved. A total of 670 companies registered in Belarus have licenses to carry out tourist business.

The reorganization of the tourist sector will be in line with a new version of the law on tourism and package of standard acts, including addenda to the licensing provision and excursion business.

Besides, the ministry plans to create a board of directors of tourist organizations jointly with the Presidential Property Management Department.

“We also need to develop inbound tourism, as only 10% of all travel agencies deal with this kind of tourism today,” Sivakov said.

Sivakov reminded that the ministry is drafting the National tourism development program for 2006-2010. The program is to include tourist infrastructure development projects, including the development of tourist routes in Belarus and northeastern Europe.

Tourist services account for only 0.5% of the total paid services, and 0.06% of GDP. End

07/02/2005

ON TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN BELARUS

(on the information from Interfax)

Consolidating efforts of all participants of the Belarusian tourism market as well as systematic usage of all country’s resources is the key to successful development of the Belarusian tourism industry.

The essence of the state tourism policy is systematic cooperation of the state, public bodies, and business entities for the development and implementation of various methods and mechanisms for the sake of stable development of the tourism industry, Belarusian Sport and Tourism Minister Yuri Sivakov said at a sitting of the Public Council on Tourism.

Not only the Tourism Department cares for tourism development, but the whole ministry does.

Besides, in Belarus there are over 600 professionals involved in the tourism industry. There are even more people worried about the industry’s future.

Speaking about last year performance, Yuri Sivakov said, the ministry was neither idle nor too industrious.

The minister regretted that the state failed to adopt a state tourism support law.

The minister noted, the efforts were able to give a wakeup call to the government to make many state agencies discuss the tourism problem.

According to the minister, the central goal now is to use the process to achieve real targets.

“With consolidated efforts we will be able to track the situation in the industry and regulate activities of all interested in it,” rounded off the minister.

One of the priority lines of development of the national tourism is the formation of tourist areas, head of the tourism department of the Sports Ministry Sergey Doronin stated at the sitting.

The tourist zone should be equipped with the necessary infrastructure.

“Thus, we will create areas attractive for internal and external investments,” the specialist believes.

“To raise the tourist industry to the world level, it is important to use the potential of tour operators, their initiative and investments to the full.”

Despite the fact that some companies are developing this line, Sergey Doronin reckons, “their activities are out of sync, while private companies decline to participate.”

Asked about the development of tourist zones, the head of the tourism department of the Sports Ministry said, “each zone should map out 3-5 routes, find a gift wrapping for it and launch an advertising campaign.” The specialist informed, “the lion’s share of financial flows circulate within the grey part of the Belarusian tourist market,” he noted.

“The key short-term task is to elaborate legal and financial blocks that will determine and control the development of tourism complex. But what is needed today is to regulate the existing market,” Sergey Doronin said.

EXCURSIONS MUST BECOME BASIS OF BELARUS’ TOURIST INDUSTRY

(on the information from Interfax)

Excursion tours should become the basis of the national tourism in Belarus, Galina Potayeva, candidate of geographic sciences, professor assistant of Belarusian State University, stated at a sitting of Board of Directors of Social Tourism Council of Viapol Additional Responsibility Company.

Excursion tourism, which she referred to as “internal cognitive tourism,” does not necessitate any financial contributions and can develop permanently.

“We must learn about our domestic tourists” before attracting foreign ones, she is convinced. “If domestic tourism is good, foreigners will flood the country,” she said.

Galina Potaeva said, “the internal cognitive tourism” is now on the rise and has considerably changed over a decade. The average traveller has grown up and adults make 49% of the tourist total today. She also informed about a new tour “Weekend in Minsk,” which is getting very popular with small-town residents, who come to the capital to enjoy museums, a snack in McDonald’s, the circus, underground and Minsk at night.

She said, it is travel agencies and bus owners, who capitalise on this kind of excursions, while local authorities and residents are not interested in the development of tourism. Here, Galina Potaeva suggested that the national legislature be amended to make preferences available for district and region travel infrastructure for further development.

The source also came up with the proposal to arrange theatre performances in tourist centres.

She added, hotel prices for domestic travellers should be reduced and made competitive to two-day trips to Kiev.

Railway tickets to Kiev, St Petersburg and Vilnius should be lowered and an association of Belarusian tour operators, Galina Potaeva said.

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SWEDISH INSTITUTE PROPOSES TOURIST PROJECT IN BELARUS

Belarus to reorganize tourism in 1H ’05 to legalize shadow profits

Belarus’ parl plans to ratify charter of World Tourism Organization

Minister says Belarus to reorganize tourist sector soon

ON TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN BELARUS

EXCURSIONS MUST BECOME BASIS OF BELARUS’ TOURIST INDUSTRY