By Gay Nagle Myers
Travel Weekly
The
success of Mexico’s new national tourism policy hinges on creating a
safe environment for visitors and improving public safety, according to
President Enrique Pena Nieto.
“It is essential to offer
tourists, both domestic and foreign, a safe environment, and we will
continue to work on improving public safety,” he said at the unveiling
of his tourism policy during a recent speech to state and government
officials on the Riviera Nayarit.
To strengthen the tourism
sector, “it is time to consolidate and build on the tourism capital we
already have and focus on modernizing and revitalizing our existing
destinations,” Pena Nieto said.
“We will open Mexico to the
world, and the world will visit Mexico,” he said. “Tourism is a
fundamental component of our economy and a key driver of national
development.”
While tourism is a key strategic sector for
national development, accounting for close to 9% of Mexico’s annual
gross domestic product, he pointed out that “the tourism sector still
has enormous potential for growth. It is necessary to create a synergy
between the private sector and government to enhance that sector for our
country’s economic development.”
With Mexico’s large stock of
cultural, natural and historical attractions, coupled with its
geographic connections, access and connectivity, “Mexico has everything
it needs to become a global tourism power,” the president said. “We want
to be a world-class destination.”
His tourism master plan is based on four guidelines.
The
first, legislative and sectorial transformation, will include improved
decision-making to ensure the implementation of various programs to
boost tourism.
To that end, Pena Nieto created and will head a
select tourism committee, which will coordinate government efforts “to
align the policy of the federal government with the efforts of the
various states of the country,” he said.
The aim of his second
guideline, innovation and competitiveness, is to diversify Mexico’s
tourism products to leverage its attractions in the global marketplace.
“We
want to specialize in six segments: sun and beach tourism; cultural
tourism; ecotourism and adventure tourism; health tourism; sports
tourism; and special-interest or luxury tourism,” he said.
Pena
Nieto intends to create a national tourism certification system to
ensure the quality of tourist services “because to be successful, we
will have to compete on the basis of the quality of services offered by
our country.”
Development and promotion, the third guideline, is
crucial to building and strengthening “the confidence of investors in
our country,” according to Pena Nieto.
“Mexico will be projected
to the whole world, but we must also project an image of reliability,
infrastructure, modernity and of the various services offered today to
international tourism,” he said.
The fourth guideline of the
national tourism policy is sustainability and social benefit, which
means creating policies and launching initiatives to ensure that tourism
in Mexico is “a clean industry that cares for and preserves our natural
heritage, history and culture,” Pena Nieto said.
