India, Australia To Jointly Promote Tourism

ET&T Staff - Mumbai

Eco-tourism, sharing expertise and a tourism business forum will form the basis of a joint action plan for putting tourism growth between India and Australia on a fast track. According to this joint action plan agreed upon in the first Joint Working Group Meeting on tourism between the two countries held recently in Australia, both countries will jointly promote the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games and 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games to generate significantly increased tourists' flow.

The Indian delegation for the Joint Working Meeting was led by Renuka Chowdhury, Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) Government of India, while the Australian counterpart was headed by the Australian Tourism Minister, Fran Bailey. Both ministers agreed to adopt an action plan to have effective bilateral cooperation in various areas of tourism and travel. They also agreed to establish a bilateral ecotourism working group to identify joint research and training projects.

Joint marketing for tourism promotion, improved air connectivity, regular interaction between Australian Federation for Travel Agents and the Travel Agent Association of India, collaboration in the area of human resource developments and facilitating travel procedures in support of bilateral tourist flows were also discussed during the meeting. Captains of tourism and travel industry from India and Australia also participated in the meeting.

The meeting also stressed on the importance of developing better understanding of tourism products in each other's countries by the tourism stakeholders of the two countries. It was agreed at the Joint Working Group Meeting that Australia will host an Australia-India Tourism Business Forum in Melbourne during the 2006 Commonwealth Games besides interaction from time to time. Both the delegations exchanged views on a way forward to encourage shared learning in preservation of the natural and cultural heritage. The sides identified eco-tourism as an area of vital interest to both countries and agreed to establish an eco-tourism working group for this purpose. The Indian side expressed concerns about travel advisories being issued by the Australian government from time to time for Australian tourists travelling to India, which result in loss of tourist arrivals in India. The Australian delegation stressed the potential for India as a tourist market for their country and presented a report on the tourism marketing activities including the India Trade Mission conducted recently in Goa and the Australian government's focus on India in its forthcoming emerging markets strategy.

Chowdhury said that both India and Australia have a vital stake in sustainable eco-tourism, and will benefit from sharing expertise in this field. "India and Australia have strong relationships on many levels, from our shared history as robust democracies under the Commonwealth to our shared passion for cricket. Our tourism statistics are also highlighting a growing interest in visiting each other's countries. Indian tourism to Australia is forecast to grow at an average 14 per cent per year for the next decade while Australian tourism to India has grown by 22 per cent in the last 12 months," she added.