Be the first to comment!Institute for Tourism Studies in Gozo inaugurated
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The Prime Minister, Lawrence Gonzi, has inaugurated the new Institute for Tourism Studies in Gozo which was one of the EU-funded projects for programming period 2004-2006, co-ordinated by the Ministry for Gozo.
Giovanna Debono, Minister for Gozo together with Mario De Marco and Chris Said, Parliamentary Secretaries within the Office of the Prime Minister, were also present for the occasion.
The project included the demolition of the previous institute and the reconstruction of the new Hotel School which includes a reception area, a main kitchen together with an individual training kitchen, cold-room and stores, a restaurant, three classrooms, a computer lab, as well as an administrative section. The Hostel section gives added amenities to the new institute that is now in a position to offer more professional courses connected with the hospitality industry. New equipment together with furniture and IT hardware, were installed.
The Hotel School, that necessitated an investment of €1.8m, has already hosted students in a number of courses over the past year. It is now envisaged that more courses and training facilities will be provided, thus contributing towards an increase of students. A number of courses in the Study of Wines and Spirits have also been organised on the request of certain Gozo established restaurants. These courses enabled staff employed by these establishments to increase their wine service aptitudes.
Other tourism related projects that were co-ordinated by the Ministry for Gozo through co-financing from EU funds for 2004-2006, included the Niche Tourism project, the installation of state-of-the-art display units at the Museum of Archaeology, the building of an extension to the Wistin Camilleri Gozo Centre for Art and Crafts as well as a Craft Incubation Centre. The NicheTourism Project included the creation of two artificial dive wrecks through the scuttling of two vessels, the marketing of Gozo as a diving destination as well as a masterplan for the diving tourism sector. A decompression unit was also set up within the Gozo General Hospital, thus strengthening this niche product.
