The first Sustainable Tourism Mauritius Awards 2022 was held, yesterday, at the Ravenala Attitude Hotel in Balaclava, in a bid to reward the safest and most sustainable stakeholders in the Tourism and Hospitality industry, as well as local Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and recognise their genuine efforts to improve their businesses to benefit local people, support cultural diversity, and advance biodiversity conservation.
The ceremony was organised by the Mauritius Tourism Authority (TA), under its project Sustainable Island Mauritius (SIM). Funded by the European Union (EU) in the framework of the Switch Africa Green programme, SIM aims at promoting sustainable tourism in Mauritius by demonstrating and scaling up self-sustaining mechanism for improving sustainability impacts along the value chain, and improving awareness and market of sustainable tourism products.
Various personalities were present at the Awards Ceremony, namely the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Industrial Development, SMEs and Cooperatives, Mrs B. Fatwma Abdool Raman Ahmed; the Director of the TA, Mr Lindsay Morvan; the Chairman of the TA, Mr Avinash Gopee; and the Ambassador of the EU to the Republic of Mauritius and Republic of Seychelles, Mr Vincent Degert.
The winner in the Handicraft and Local Products category was the Good Shop while E-Boat bagged the Gold Distinction Award in the Boat & Pleasure Craft Operator category. Lagoon Attitude and La Vieille Cheminée came first in the Hotel Category and Other Accommodation Category, respectively. The Gold Distinction Award for Tour Operator/ Tour Guide was given to Coquille Bonheur.
Moreover, Mautourco became the first company in the country to obtain the Blue Oasis certification, introduced by the Mauritius Standards Bureau for tourism organisations with a view to enhancing their sustainability performance.
The Sustainable Tourism Mauritius Awards was preceded by a series of workshops and events held from 05 to 11 May 2022. Among these activities featured a Panel Discussion on 'Investing in Sustainable Mauritius'; the launching of SIM E-Pamphlet featuring financial institutions and green technology providers; and a workshop on 'Making Mauritius a Green Destination'.
