The need to formulate a unified national strategy that will meaningfully link tourism with the primary sector is highlighted by the President of the Messinia Hoteliers Association, Dimitris Karalis, stressing that the fragmented development of the two sectors undermines the countrys competitive advantage.
As he notes, the solitary path of tourism can prove to be a dead end if it is not accompanied by the primary sector, adding that in a country such as Greece, the alignment of the two can decisively strengthen its international position by leveraging the wealth of its land, history, and culture, as well as its unique marine and terrestrial environment and ecosystem.
Mr. Karalis speaks of a long-standing absence of a national strategy, pointing out that it is remarkable how both tourism and the primary sector have been left to proceed on their own and, worse still, without clear direction. At the same time, he criticizes political leaderships which, as he states, have failed to grasp the importance of agriculture, livestock farming, fisheries, and beekeepingsectors that form the foundation of Greek gastronomy and, by extension, part of the countrys cultural capital.
Referring to recent developments and mobilizations, he underlines that the problems threatening production do not only deprive the country of export potential but also remove a powerful weapon from the arsenal of Greek tourism. Tourism professionals cannot remain indifferent to the demands of people who live off the countrys fauna and flora, when they are called upon to survive without a goal, without direction, and without adaptation to demand, he emphasizes.
In conclusion, he notes that the factors affecting the primary sector are the same ones that shape the tourism product, which likewise requires corresponding adjustments. These are what we lack. These are what we are asking for. And these are what we insist on, he states, calling on collective tourism bodies to assume an active mediating role. At the same time, he warns that practices of social automatism lead with mathematical certainty to dead ends.
