Brazil's Minister of Tourism calls for a unique global health protocol

The Minister of Tourism, Gilson Machado Neto, participated this Tuesday (18.05), in Madrid, Spain, in the inauguration of the XXIV Ibero-American Conference of Ministers and Entrepreneurs of Tourism (Cimet), an event that is part of the International Tourism Fair ( Fitur). The meeting addresses the future of the sector and the resumption of activities in the post-pandemic, which includes health protocols, vaccination and debates on the unification of measures between countries. Also on the agenda were the executive secretary of MTur, Daniel Nepomuceno, and the president of Embratur, Carlos Brito.

Cimet is held every year with the aim of discussing measures for the sector, as well as opportunities and trends for world tourism. This year, the topics focused on the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic and actions for the resumption of tourism activities in the world.

During his participation in the ceremony, Minister Gilson Machado Neto highlighted the importance of countries and world leaders coming together to strengthen the sector and resume activities. "It is very important to be together here to exchange experiences and identify strategies that contribute to the recovery of the tourism industry," he said.

Machado Neto cited the impacts of the pandemic in Brazil and the actions that the federal government took to guarantee the survival of thousands of companies and jobs. "First, we worked to guarantee wages and working hours with the establishment of the emergency program for the maintenance of employment and income and the payment of emergency financial aid to almost 70 million people, which totaled R $ 295 billion. still in 2020, "he said. .

“We also act in the regulation of relations with the consumer, guaranteeing the rights of consumers and preventing the massive bankruptcy of companies in the tourism sector. We also granted a historic loan of R $ 5 billion to help reduce the impacts of the pandemic in the tourism sector, with a focus on the companies' working capital and with special conditions ”, he said.

The minister also reinforced his request for the elaboration of a single agenda for the world, with health protocols, vaccination and strategies aligned between the countries. "I feel the need for us to fight for a single agenda, for the UNWTO (World Tourism Organization) to encourage the WHO (World Health Organization) to seek solutions to facilitate and accelerate the flow between countries," he declared. "What vaccines will be accepted? It makes no sense for Brazil to be vaccinated with a vaccine that Spain does not accept and vice versa, ”he said.

The minister explained that the country has increasingly sought to promote alliances with the private sector. The federal government has adopted measures to reduce the bureaucracy of the processes, improve the legislation and provide investors with greater certainty and legal certainty. "We also learned that only with the interaction between the public and the private are we going to overcome this. With a crisis like this, we can also learn more about our country and know that, when it comes out of the pandemic, Brazil will be one." one of the most attractive countries for nature tourism ”, he concluded.

The general director of FITUR, Eduardo López-Puertas, highlighted the importance of the International Fair. “It will be a reunion of human contact and business relationships for everyone. It will be the restart of international tourism and the first fair of face-to-face and mobility experiences in the world ”, he explained. Contribute to the recovery of tourism: this is the intention of all those who are participating in the fair, "he added.

The deputy mayor of Madrid, Begoña Villacis, commented that the Spanish capital is growing by 5% in tourism and Spain is the second country in the world to receive tourists. “It was a hard blow for tourism. Seeing empty hotels was the worst consequence of seeing during the pandemic. With the vaccine in the world, we already have a light at the end of the tunnel for the resumption of tourism ”, he declared. “We already have vaccines, we already know about the virus. Just use the correct protocols for this resume. Traveling is safe. Destinations are safe ”, he concluded.