New health and hygiene protocols in the establishments and the commitment to attract national tourists in an environment where short trips will be preferred, are some of the trends predicted in the new "normality" that will come after the quarantine period.
Given the quarantines decreed by most governments worldwide, it is anticipated that the habits of tourists will change dramatically in the short and medium term, as the crisis of covid-19 will leave consequences among consumers.
The Panamanian government's optimistic projections are based on the publicity that finally began this year at the international level, with the injection of $20 million into the Tourism Promotion Fund.
The campaign to promote Panama as a tourist destination in the main international markets began in November of this year and will be active for eight months.
The agreement to be signed in 2020, aims to make a strategic alliance and promote both countries in the multi-destination format.
The governments of Panama and Jamaica, represented by Tourism Ministers Ivan Eskildsen and Hon Edmund Bartlett, respectively, agreed to sign a multi-destination agreement next year to strengthen tourism relations and increase tourist arrivals, according to the Panama Tourism Authority (ATP).
Ensuring the resources of the Mixed Fund for Tourism Promotion and the formalization of the administration of the Amador Convention Center are actions that the business sector of Panama proposes to the new authorities to reactivate the activity of the sector.
The Tourism Promotion Fund has the aim of increasing by 100 thousand the number of visitors that annually arrive in the country, a rise that would be determined by the development of advertising campaigns in five areas.
In 2018, the entry of tourists through the main ports of entry to the country was 2,480,190, according to official figures. Therefore, the arrival of 100,000 more tourists would be equivalent to a 5% annual increase.
In Panama, the first $5 million was given to the International Tourism Promotion Fund, which is part of the $20 million that each year corresponds to the fund by law.
From the ATP statement:
May 24, 2019. The administrator of the Panama Tourism Authority, Gustavo Him, delivered this morning the first 5 million dollars to the International Tourism Promotion Fund, in the framework of the inauguration of International Tourism Expo 2019, which takes place at the ATLAPA Convention Center, on 24 and 25 May.
From May 9 to 10 in Costa Rica Expotur 2019 will be held at the National Convention Center, which will bring together 230 international buyers from the tourism sector from 35 countries.
Erasmo Rojas, president of the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (Acoprot), explained to Nacion.com that "... The activity consists of two days of negotiations and alliances that allow revitalize the tourist offer each year and generate millions of dollars in tourist currency for accommodations, food and transportation."
In Panama, the National Assembly approved a law initiative, whose purpose is to establish the annual contribution of $20 million for the Tourism Promotion Fund.
Regarding the approved initiative, establishes that the fund will have legal identity, own assets and autonomy in its administrative, economic, tax, financial and functional system, whose assets will be managed through an administrative trust fund, informed the Assembly in a statement.
Given the slowdown in activity, which is reflected in the loss of 25,000 jobs in the last two years, tourism entrepreneurs in Panama insist on continuing with the international promotion campaign.
The Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama (Cciap), denounced the fact that the tourism industry is suffering a slowdown, evident in the loss of about 25,000 jobs in the last two years, with direct impact on the management of different services and products of the sector which, in some cases, have had to halt their activities and in others to reduce them severely, as well as the closing down of several companies dedicated to various related areas.
The Varela administration has approved the regulation of the International Tourism Promotion Fund, which defines how resources can be used to attract more tourists to Panama.
From a statement issued by presidency of Panama:
The President of the Republic, Juan Carlos Varela, signed on Thursday, August 23, the internal regulations on the International Tourism Promotion Fund, which gives the country a financial structure that will facilitate policies and projects to attract more tourists to the country.
In order to compensate for some of the decrease in the arrival of visitors from Colombia and Venezuela, Panamanian authorities have increased promotion in markets such as China, Canada and the USA.
The aim is to attract tourists with greater purchasing power, and to compensate for the reduction that for various reasons has been recorded in the entry of Colombian and Venezuelan tourists.According to the tourism authorities, in the case of Colombia, depreciation of the Colombian peso has had an affect, making Panama more expensive, and in the case of Venezuela, it is the political and economic crisis in the country.
On May 25 and 26, a meeting of tourism companies from Central America will take place in Panama City, in which buyers from all over the world will take part.
The International Tourism Expo 2018 will be held at the ATLAPA Convention Center, in Panama City.
The meeting, organized by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama, will involve more than 160 international issuing wholesalers from Europe, North America and Latin America, with the aim of seeking service providers and tourism products.
The international tourism sector meeting scheduled for the end of April, is expected to be attended by 166 buyers from 44 countries.
The Expotur 2018 tourist fair, organized by the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (Acoprot), will take place in the new Congress and Convention Center, from April 25 to 27 of this year.
In a fair held in Guangzhou, more than 200 business appointments were held between tourist entrepreneurs in Panama and buyers and travel agencies in the Asian country.
From a statement issued by the Tourism Authority of Panama:
The Tourism Authority and 9 companies certified with the seal of quality, which presented Panama as a modern country, with excellent infrastructure for congresses and conventions, air connectivity and tourist sites, managed to arrange more than 200 appointments, during the three days of exposition and business negotiations, at the Travel Fair in the province of Guangzhou, China.
Tailor made tourist packages, modifications in hotels, and learning the Mandarin language, are just some of the aspects that companies must work on in order to receive tourists from China.
The bilateral tourism promotion agreement signed between the governments of China and Panama, after they reestablished diplomatic relations in June 2017, involves much more than a simple framework to promote the arrival of tourists, but also contemplates the requirements that Panama must meet in order to be categorized as a country authorized to be visited by the citizens of China.