Tunis — Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts, Mohamed Moez Belhassine, reviewed on Saturday the measures taken during the ministerial working sessions held in June and July. The main objective of these measures was to strengthen the handicraft sector and to establish a dedicated Destination Management Organisation (DMO) to promote tourism in the Sahara.
Chairing the local tourism council in Tataouine, Belhassine stressed that this organisation will oversee the restructuring and promotion of this industry through a public-private partnership.
It will also seek to encourage greater investment in the sector, while working to revise the regulatory framework.
"We are committed to establishing responsible and sustainable tourism in the Sahara," he said, stressing the need for greater coordination between the various stakeholders involved in the project's implementation.
Participants at the meeting highlighted the challenges hampering tourism in the region, in particular the complexity of procedures and the very limited capacity of tourist accommodation, which does not exceed 600 beds.
They also called for an increase in the resources allocated by the Ministry to tourist municipalities to enable them to fulfil their role in promoting tourism.
On this occasion, the minister visited two new facilities: the first in Ksar Ouled Debbab (about 10km south of Tataouine) and the second in Ksar Haddada (about 5km from Ghomrassen).
