The Minister for Tourism Edward Zammit Lewis and Minister for Gozo Anton Refalo this morning addressed the Annual General Meeting of the Gozo Tourism Association (GTA).

Both Ministers noted that the year 2015 was an absolute record for the local tourism industry and that this positive trend was also reflected in Gozo .

Minister Zammit Lewis observed that according to a study commissioned by the Ministry for Tourism, the contribution of tourism to Gozo's GDP is 50%. Moreover, that same report established that one in five Gozitans worked within the sector, and this industry generates 30% of jobs in Gozo's private sector.

Despite the positive results registered, the Minister noted that seasonality remained a challenging issue for Gozo.

With reference to Gozo's tourism offer, the Minister for Tourism stated that Gozo's tourism product possessed great strengths in areas such as quality accommodation, wellness, relaxation, scuba diving, and outdoor activities.

He emphasised that Gozo's potential as a destination for rural tourism was relatively untapped, and its distinct natural environment meant that Gozo was capable of attracting tourism flows that vary substantially, including domestic tourism, and substantial volumes of day trippers.

He also pointed out that Gozo boasts a growing port-of-call cruise segment. During 2015, the island was visited by 18 cruise-liners carrying around 9,600 passengers.

The Minister stated that apart from the immediate economic benefits, these day-visits provided travellers the opportunity to have a first taste of what Gozo could offer as a destination, and who can return to visit the island for a longer stay.

Speaking about the issue of seasonality, the Minister for Tourism affirmed that its is vital to create new niche markets. The Minister noted that Gozo's rich rural heritage could be presented as a cultural niche, presented in the form of events, arts and crafts, outdoor activities, festivals, folklore, and gastronomy.

He added that religious tourism, Gozo's archaeological treasures and the Island's millennial history could be better packaged and further promoted as highlights of the island's offer.

Furthermore, he commended the GTA for being proactive in securing and benefiting from EU funding for marketing initiatives aimed at raising Gozo's international profile, complementing the Malta Tourism Authority's (MTA) efforts in this regard.

The Minister also encouraged all Gozitan tourism stakeholders to make more use of EU funded mechanisms in order to achieve their objectives, he explained that soon the Government will be launching the new schemes falling under the 2014-2020 funding regime, which, he said, should further help the industry to achieve a quality leap.

During his address the Minister for Tourism also outlined other areas of potential growth in Gozo tourism including Film Tourism. He explained that as part of its strategy, the Malta Film Commission (MFC) introduced new incentives, and is working on an extensive international marketing campaign that will be boosted over 2016.

Furthermore the Minister was pleased to announce that the Malta Film Commission and the Malta Tourism Authority joined forces on a screen tourism project, whereby a series of informative signs will be installed on locations where films were shots in Malta and Gozo, he also added that in due course, each sign will also be equipped with a wifi spot which will allow visitors to access additional content online.

He said that the first informative sign in Mgarr ix-Xini will be installed in the coming weeks promoting the films that were shot in this unique bay.

Minister Zammit Lewis stated also that work is underway between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry for Gozo, the Malta Council for the Arts and the MTA, to enhance Gozo's cultural calendar, in order for the island to attract more cultural tourism.

He maintained that the aim is to focus more activities around particular dates and encourage tourists and Maltese to visit Gozo and possibly even spend a night or more here. Moreover, the Minister said that this should also enable the MTA to promote such events with tour operators more effectively also through its network abroad.

"This Government, as well as the GTA, share one common strategic priority, ensuring continuity in the economic benefits from regular tourism activity, generating more and better jobs for Gozitans, as well as diversifying Gozo's tourist offer to make it more sustainable in the long-term, " stated the Minister for Tourism.For his part, the Minister for Gozo, Anton Refalo, stated that once again Gozo registered an increase in tourist arrivals in 2015 when compared to 2014. Minister Refalo mentioned the recent survey conducted by the Gozo Tourism Association amongst the Gozitan tourist establishments.

"The figures published by the NSO and the GTA indicate a sector that is becoming more intense, vibrant and diversified. This survey shows positive results achieved by these establishments and to a great extent reflects the touristic achievements during 2015," he said.

Dr Refalo pointed out that majority, or 64% of these establishments covering the various touristic sectors, reported that their business performed better than 2014, while 28% declared that their 2015 performance was on the same levels of 2014. 68% of the respondents declared improved performance from the foreign market while 27% of respondents reported an increase in the domestic market.

"It was even stated that the majority of the Gozitan tourism establishments are expecting an improvement during the current year."

Minister Refalo stated that these increases were also the result of several initiatives taken by the Ministry for Gozo during 2015, such as the various initiatives of the reduced fares of the Gozo Channel, the programme of events for the Holy week and the Christmas period.

Dr Refalo confirmed that increases were also registered in international tourism, and were mainly the result of more marketing efforts, participation in international tourism fairs, and a number of promotional publications.

The Minister said that the above initiatives were carried out through a synergized approach with the tourism stakeholders, namely the Malta Tourism Authority and the Gozo Tourism Association.

"Predictions for the current year 2016 are that the Gozitan tourism industry will experience yet another positive year both in numbers as well as in quality tourists. These indications are also strengthened by the feeling that the trade will be coming due to the various international tourism fairs being attended presently by MTA and GTA representatives."

Dr Refalo said that this synergized approach by all stakeholders in marketing and promoting Gozo as a distinct tourist destination, yet complementary to Malta, will continue to contribute towards the reaping of these results.

Minister Refalo stated that although 2015 was a positive year for tourism in Gozo and that 2016 predictions are very encouraging, there are still challenges that need to be tackled during this current year as well as for the immediate future.

Minister Refalo concluded by saying that Destination Gozo needs to sustain its current tourist arrivals, both foreign and domestic, while improving the island's infrastructure in order to offer a better product to meet the tourists' expectations.

In their concluding remarks, the Minister for Tourism Edward Zammit Lewis and the Minister for Gozo Anton Refalo thanked the GTA, for their relentless efforts in continuing to spur the development of the tourism industry in Gozo.

They augured a successful year to all those working in the Gozitan tourism industry, to the island's tourism entrepreneurs, and the Gozitan community in general.

Photographs: MGOZ/George Scerri

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