Former Tourism Minister and Greek main opposition New Democracy party Culture Sector head MP Olga Kefalogianni noted that the Greek Tourism Ministry is currently in panic and appears incapable of programming.
According to Ms Kefalogianni, these weaknesses of the Ministry’s current administration have resulted in its failure to launch Greece’s international advertising programme in time.
As she underlined in her statement, “The programming inability of the current political leadership of the Ministry of Tourism is regrettable, to say the least. The tourism sector which accounts for 20% of the country’s GDP is treated as an experiment subject. The country’s image abroad and the good practices of the recent past pay the price. The inability to launch timely Greece’s promotion and advertising program abroad is a direct consequence. Yesterday, we witnessed the panic of the Tourism Ministry, immediately after the impact of implementing the integration of the EU Directive on public contracts began to emerge. All stakeholders involved in tourism, both in the public as well as the private sector, completely acknowledge the global tourism market’s timing and schedules and plan their actions accordingly. In a superficial and perfunctory manner, the Ministry of Tourism has tabled two amendments in order to deal with issues that should have already been resolved since the summer, as was the case in recent years. Is this sketchy treatment of the tourism sector by the competent Minister “a sign of the times”? One thing is certain: The Ministry of Tourism operates without any plan, ignoring the best practices of the past, whose positive results are still felt even today. The reduced revenue from tourism during 2016 is a loss which must be addressed immediately and technically before it becomes the norm. Unfortunately, the Tourism Ministry ignores the fact that the industry requires precision planning and fast reflexes.”
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