The United Nations and the international community generally define Best Available Practices (BAPs) and Best Available Technologies (BATs) as ‘outstanding contributions to improve the living environment’. Indeed, the difference between BAPs and BATs is not always distinct, although BATs have a capital good  and technology transfer component to it, in practice, BATs could form an integral component  of BAPs and vice versa.

For the COAST Project, the following are examples of selected BAPs/BATs for the three thematic areas (Eco-tourism, Reef and Marine Recreation Management, Environmental Management Systems) in the COAST countries.

the Ghana Tourism Authority was established as the main implemeting body of the Ministry of Tourism, replacing the Ghana Tourist Board. GTA’s mission is to ensure sustainable tourism development through the creation of an enabling environment for the provision of quality tourism facilities and services for the traveling public with a well-qualified, highly-motivated, and dedicated work force, thereby promoting tourism to become the leading sector of the economy.

Professor Geoffrey Lipman, President of ICTP, said: “The involvement of the Ghana Tourism Authority confirms the growing strength of the African membership of ICTP and the clear commitment emerging across the continent for the green growth and quality priorities we represent. Ghana is also a rapidly-growing aviation hub, which is vital to Africa's connectivity progress and its totally interrelated development agenda.”

The Ghana Tourism Authority envisions Ghana becoming the tourism capital of West Africa, especially in culture, heritage, ecotourism, as well as conference tourism in a quality non-mass manner.

Nature is important to Ghana and a conservation program strives to protect this heritage, to enable visitors to enjoy it and to enable Ghanaians to pass it on to future generations. Ghana has a rich natural treasure made up of 16 national parks, resource reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries, which are open throughout the year. From the savannah of the coastal plains, the dense tropical forest, and the grassland of the north, to the life-giving water bodies, which crisscross the country, distinct wildlife abounds in Ghana.

ICTP Chairman Juergen T. Steinmetz said: “Ghana pulsates with life. From the bustle of downtown Accra to the adobe villages of the north, and the ancient Kingdom of Asante, it is a country whose immense cultural diversity both thrills and fascinates visitors, drawing them into a daily rhythm that is uniquely and unmistakenly African. We are sure the energy of Ghana will permeate our membership, and ICTP in turn will be able to bring Ghana’s tourism opportunities to a wider audience.”

For more information, go to www.ghana.travel .

ABOUT ICTP

The International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) is a grassroots travel and tourism coalition of global destinations committed to quality service and green growth. The ICTP logo represents the strength in collaboration (the block) of many small communities (the lines) committed to sustainable oceans (blue) and land (green). ICTP engages communities and their stakeholders to share quality and green opportunities including tools and resources, access to funding, education, and marketing support. ICTP advocates sustainable aviation growth, streamlined travel formalities, and fair coherent taxation. ICTP supports the UN Millennium Development Goals, the UN World Tourism Organization's Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and a range of programs that underpin them. The ICTP alliance is represented in Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA; Brussels, Belgium; Bali, Indonesia; and Victoria, Seychelles.

ICTP has members in Anguilla; Aruba; Bangladesh; Belgium, Belize; Brazil; Canada; Caribbean; China; Croatia; The Gambia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; India; Indonesia; Iran; Korea (South); La Reunion (French Indian Ocean); Malaysia; Malawi; Mauritius; Mexico; Morocco; Nicaragua; Nigeria; Northern Mariana Islands (USA Pacific Island Territory); Sultanate of Oman; Pakistan; Palestine; Philippines; Rwanda; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; South Africa; Sri Lanka; Sudan; Tajikistan; Tanzania; Trinidad & Tobago; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe; and from the US: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Missouri, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.

Partner associations include: African Bureau of Conventions; African Chamber of Commerce Dallas/Fort Worth; Africa Travel Association; Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association; Caribbean Tourism Organization; Countrystyle Community Tourism Network/Villages as Businesses; Cultural and Environment Conservation Society; DC-Cam (Cambodia); Euro Congres; Hawaii Tourism Association; International Delphic Council (IDC); International Foundation for Aviation and Development, Montreal, Canada; International Institute for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT); International Organization of Electronic Tourism Industry (IOETI), Italy; Positive Impact Events, Manchester, UK; RETOSA: Angola - Botswana - DR Congo - Lesotho - Madagascar - Malawi - Mauritius - Mozambique - Namibia - South Africa - Swaziland - Tanzania - Zambia- Zimbabwe; Routes, SKAL International; Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality (SATH); Sustainable Travel International (STI); The Region Initiative, Pakistan; The Travel Partnership Corporation; vzw Reis-en Opleidingscentrum, Gent, Belgium; WATA World Association of Travel Agencies, Switzerland; as well as university and educational institute partners.

For more information, go to: www.tourismpartners.org .

"It is now common knowledge that social and economic development in African and other developing countries depends considerably on establishment and development of small and medium size enterprises," the vice-president said in a speech read on his behalf by Mr Said Ali Mbarouk, Minister for Tourism.

The two-day conference attracted participants mainly students, lecturers and tourism operators from 15 African countries. Several papers were presented at the conference being held at the Zanzibar Beach Resort, with emphasis on sustainable tourism to involve conservation, environmental integrity, social justice and economic development, aiming at benefiting people.

In his welcoming note before the official opening, the Vice- Chancellor of the University of Dar es Salaam, Prof Rwekiza Mukandala observed that sustainable tourism was important in this era, where tourism plays a big role in economic development.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201208100100.html

Officials drawn from all member countries met in Nairobi last week to agree on issues such as developing a common selling point for regional tourism market, creating innovative and cheaper products to promote domestic tourism and improving the image of regional tourism on the international arena.

The meeting touched base on various issues, and each delegation recapped their own observations and experience of their country’s tourism, so that others could benefit from it.

Some of the topics covered were the development of economic opportunities, best practices for sustainable tourism development, tourism policy, and the need to prioritize the sector within the national framework of economic activity.

Also discussed was the relaxation of visa requirements, which will ensure that each country’s immigration authorities develop an appropriate framework to facilitate the adoption of a single tourist visa for the COMESA region.

Developing the sustainable tourism strategy was also featured and encouraged, while issues such as the conservation of biodiversity also featured high on the agenda. How to adopt a sustainable tourism development policy and strategy by the end 2013 was investigated, as all delegates were aware that only an intact environment could sustainably support wildlife and nature-based tourism.

Looking back, Mr. César noted that the forum was very informative, and countries taking part in the forum are more aware of the great potential that a stable tourism industry can have on one’s country’s economy, “As of today, COMESA members need to take a common and regional approach towards a sustainable tourism development and engage in implementing a plan of action, which has been brought forward in the forum.

“For his part, Walter Talma, COMESA/USAID Program Coordinator, who was supporting the Seychelles delegation at the forum, said, “Regional integration in this sector must be part of our intense involvement to create more wealth and economic growth of our member states, noting that tourism is until now still our bread and butter.”

Initially scheduled to take place earlier in the year, the organization then decided to prepare even more comprehensively for the event, due to be held at Nairobi’s Windsor Golf and Country Club between August 22-24.

Keynote speakers have been invited from across the 19 member countries and from Eastern Africa speakers lined up, still to be finally confirmed, including Dr. Titus Naikuni, Group Managing Director and CEO of Kenya Airways; the CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, Tewolde Gebre Mariam; and the Group Managing Director and CEO of Serena Hotels, Mahmoud Janmohamed, among several other top-reputed captains of industry.

The three-day event, organized jointly by the COMESA Secretariat and the Ministry of Tourism in Kenya as host country, will be packed with keynote speeches, workshop and discussion sessions, and Q&A opportunities, where the plenary will have the opportunity to question industry leaders, from both the private and public sector, on the way forward for the tourism industry across COMESA.

The statement received reads in full as follows:

First COMESA Regional Sustainable Tourism Development Forum

LUSAKA, ZAMBIA - Business leaders and policy makers will, for the first time, discuss a competitive approach to tourism in the region. COMESA has organized the Sustainable Tourism Development Forum, to be held on August 22-24, 2012 in Nairobi, Kenya. The public-private dialogue, to be held under the theme, “Shaping the Future of Tourism in COMESA,” will bring together over 70 regional participants from tourism boards, investment promotion agencies, tourism businesses, and development partners.

The meeting is to be hosted by COMESA Secretariat in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism for Kenya. The Forum has been organized through the support of the COMESA Business Council in partnership with Kenya Investment Authority and Kenya Tourism Board. The meeting will analyze the regional diagnostic study of COMESA’s 19 Member States, whose aim was to come up with a framework for regional approaches that can be undertaken by both the public and private sector stakeholders to promote a more competitive, investor friendly, sustainable tourism sector in the region.

The framework addresses issues such as putting in place a regional policy and strategy that defines tourism in the region, promotes the relaxation of visa requirements for tourists, packages and brands tourism, investment in infrastructure for tourism development, upgrades the sector to meet regional and global standards, promotes investment in key areas of tourism such as hospitality and catering, addresses supply side constraints in the hotel industry, and exploits the quick benefits of E-tourism, among others.

The setting of the Forum, Windsor Resort Hotel, one of the luxury resorts of Kenya, will provide the country an opportunity to showcase its tourism attractions and provide the participants with a taste of Kenya’s natural beauty, diverse culture, local brands, and quality wildlife experience.

It is expected that dignitaries from the tourism sectors of Morocco, Egypt, and the Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa (RETOSA) will also attend the meeting, which will share the experiences of corporate hotels like Serena Group, Speke Hotel Group, and renowned tour operators from all countries in the COMESA region.

In the face of an ever-changing economic and political environment, tourism continues to succeed as a well-performing sector in regional and international markets. While the industry moves towards adopting more sustainable models, the economic outlook of the sector today clearly indicates that there are great benefits to reap through a regional approach to boosting competitiveness, sustainability, and investment.

Among the expected results of the Forum is a roadmap and action plan owned by the stakeholders, which will structure tangible approaches towards shaping a sustainable tourism strategy and implementation framework for the COMESA region.

Tourism is the fastest-developing enterprise in Africa and one of the continent’s major investment opportunities, standing at 6 percent growth rate the last decennium. Africa receives 4.8 percent of all tourist arrivals in the world, and 3.3 percent of the receipts, and although it is not at the heart of the global tourist market, this modest proportion of the world’s number one industry is still important for the continent. The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) estimates that, from direct and indirect activities combined, the tour and travel sector now accounts for a remarkable 9.2 percent of global GDP. Tourism’s contribution to employment is estimated at 6-7 percent of the overall number of jobs worldwide, and it makes up 4.8 percent of world exports and 9.2 percent of world investments.

1. Ms. Marla Pinto Rodrigues
2. Ms. Yolanda Cachu
3. Mr. Ludovic Bernadaut
4. Mr. Harvey Garcia