SECTUR presents the first Economic Study of Magical Towns

The Secretary of Tourism of the Government of Mexico, Miguel Torruco Marqués, presented this morning the "First Economic Study of Magical Towns", which he described as a work of statistical information of great relevance for the country's tourism activity.

During the event, which was held remotely, he specified that it is the first economic study of the 132 Magical Towns, through which it has been possible to determine the importance of these destinations for domestic tourism, as well as their importance in the economy. local, state, regional and national.

He assured that this new methodology will be very useful for the capture, analysis and interpretation regarding the economic impact that tourism has in the Magical Towns.

"For the first time we have economic statistical data, in terms of tourism, which come from the Economic Censuses that the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) carries out every five years, providing new elements and criteria for better decision-making in the appointment of future Magical Towns ", he pointed out.

The head of the Ministry of Tourism explained that it seeks to publicize strategic information that measures the economic value of each of the Magical Towns. As an example, one of the main findings of this analysis is that the Gross Census Added Value (GVA) of these towns presented an average annual growth rate of 11.9 percent, at constant values, for the period 2003-2018.

He added that the information generated in these destinations will contribute to the strengthening of the sector, through the design of public policies based on technical and statistical analysis, which will allow all Mexicans to benefit from one of the most important productive branches of the economy, in alignment with the national tourism policy.

He asserted that the Ministry of Tourism supports its work in the use and exploitation of information, without which it would be impossible to monitor and measure the performance of tourism activity.

"It should be noted that this study has been able to be carried out with trained personnel from the secretariat under my charge, without resorting to hiring external actors, which in the past generated onerous expenses for the public purse," he said.

In this sense, it also recognized the contribution of other agencies and entities of the Federal Public Administration, as well as autonomous bodies that actively participate in the Specialized Technical Committee in Economic Statistics of the Tourism Sector, which currently presides, within the framework of the National System of Statistical and Geographic Information.

"With this work we want to support the Network of Mayors of Magical Towns, as well as their Citizen Committees, in the tourism planning efforts they carry out at the municipal and local level," he said.

In the same way, he assured that he wants this study to favor the integration of tourist products, giving greater added value to the activity and the confluence of the productive chains.

He trusted that this effort provides elements to promote concurrence with dependencies of the three levels of government and support concrete actions in favor of the Magical Towns.

Finally, the secretary Torruco Marqués urged those attending the presentation to use this analysis and enrich it, not only in favor of the host communities of these unique destinations, but also the tourist activity in Mexico.

Senator Antonio García Conejo, president of the Tourism Commission of the Senate of the Republic, stated that it is a comprehensive study, for which he congratulated the team of the Ministry of Tourism that carried it out.

"Without a doubt it has not been easy. I see how different platforms and tools have been presented to us, the maps, all this measurement that will be very useful for the Magical Towns. I am very pleased and I trust that it will not only stay This tool is available to local, state and federal authorities, but will be used to combine actions, to join forces, to be clear about what to do in each of these localities, "he said.

He added that the Study allows us to see how this program that was born 20 years ago has progressed, that it has been good and that today the present federal administration has respected, "and not only that, but it is strengthening these localities that have shown that they help the economic development, because at the end of the day what we seek is to improve people's quality of life, have a job and live better, "he concluded.

For his part, Juan Carlos Rivera Castellanos, Secretary of Tourism of Oaxaca and president of the Union of Secretaries of Tourism of Mexico (Asetur), expressed that since the Magical Towns Program was created, there had not been a tool that could measure the impact of the tourist activity of the Magical Towns.

"So from Asetur we celebrate the efforts that the federal Sectur coordinates with Inegi for the development of this first economic study. We reaffirm our commitment to collaborate with its strengthening, since this tool gives us clarity and certainty, but above all it allows follow up on all the work measures that are being implemented, "he said.

In turn, Graciela Márquez Colín, vice president of the Governing Board of the National Institute of Statistics and Geography, pointed out that, more than a presentation, the meeting was actually a work session because it showed how these statistics are constructed, which reflects that it was worked collectively, since it is not easy or simple to do them.

"On a daily basis in the Economic Information Subsystem under my charge, as vice president of Inegi, the Ministry of Tourism and the officials of the Institute work in coordination. Within the framework of the Specialized Technical Committee, with the extraordinary participation of the engineer Alejandro Aguilera de Sectur, statistical activities were created and developed, the basis of the report that is presented today, "he commented.

He assured that this study is one of the best examples of inter-institutional collaboration, which aims to have results that are useful for the design of public policy; for a very active private sector of the industry; and also for all those travelers who participate in the tourist activity.

In turn, Igor Roji López, municipal president of Orizaba, Veracruz, and president of the National Network of Mayors of Magical Towns, said he was surprised by the information from the Study.

"They are presenting the statistical information that we as mayors need to make decisions. There was nothing similar, there was nothing related to data from the Magical Towns. In Orizaba we have been a Magical Town since 2015 and we always lacked tools to make decisions, tools like those that are presenting today, "he said.

The meeting was attended by the virtual presence of secretaries of Tourism of the country; Carlos Jesús Gómez Flores, president of the Citizen Committees of the Magical Towns; mayors and mayors of Mexico City and the Magical Towns; as well as representatives of the Citizen Committees of these tourist destinations.

On behalf of the federal Sectur, the following participated: Humberto Hernández-Haddad, Undersecretary of Quality and Regulation; Alejandro Aguilera Gómez, head of the International Affairs and Cooperation Unit; José Armando García Nuño, general director of Planning; Guillermo Cervantes Cuevas, general director of Monitoring and Evaluation; and Manuel Mayer Hernández, general director of Sectorial Information Integration.