The Kingdom has been awarded the UNWTO (Ulysses Special
Jury Prize) by the World Trade Organization (WTO) for
its innovation in Tourism Governance.
“This is a prestigious award we have received for
the Education Scholastic Tourism Program (Smile) which
we launched in 2005 in cooperation with the Ministry
of Education,” Prince Sultan ibn Salman, secretary general
of the Supreme Commission For Tourism (SCT), told newsmen
at a packed press conference at the SCT headquarters
held here recently to celebrate the award which was
given in in Madrid on Wednesday.
The prince formally presented the award to Education
Minister Dr. Abdullah Saleh Al-Obeid, whose ministry
was instrumental in implementing the program for 150,000
students during the past three years.
Thanking the ministry of education for its unstinted
cooperation, the prince recalled that during the past
two years, the program — Smile — has covered 150,000
students and 1,800 teachers in 2,700 schools in 42 education
department offices. “We want to extend this proven program
to another 900,000 students — both boys and girls —
in the intermediate and high schools,” Prince Sultan
added.
UNWTO’s Ulysses Special Jury Prize is bestowed on
projects undertaken by public institutions in tourism
(governmental, public-private partnerships), tourism
enterprises and non-profit institutions (NGOs, Civil
Society), which merit distinction for their innovative
contributions to tourism policy, governance, and areas
of tourism such as the environmental and new technologies.
“Smile is a program innovated by us to suit our culture
and environment,” the prince said, pointing out that
it is a long-term program founded to inculcate tourism
culture among the generations of students. “The program
is geared for reaching the Saudi family through its
male and female teenagers and promote their participation
in developing domestic tourism.” The prince also said
that the SCT had signed agreements with more than 30
government agencies for the successful implementation
of this program among the students.
“We are ready to launch the next phase which would
cover a larger group of students comprising both girls
and boys,” Dr. Al-Obeid said, adding that his ministry
is happy that it is bestowed with a good opportunity
not only to cultivate the tourist culture among the
students but also enabled the ministry to take part
in the economic development of Saudi Arabia in cooperation
with the SCT.
Dr Ali Hamad Al-Kheshaiban, general director of Tourism
and Society Program of the SCT, said that under the
program, the department of education picks up a group
of 30 students from each school for a two-day itinerary
which includes a six- hour lecture and a day’s field
trip to one of the tourist sites in the vicinity of
the school. The lecture program is designed to transfer
tourism concepts to students, introduce the practice
of tourism and planning between participants and their
families which will eventually pave the way for promoting
domestic tourism.
“We have a rich culture and heritage which could
be portrayed effectively to the tourists with a smile
and our traditional Arabian hospitality,” Al-Kheshaiban
said
Mohammed Rasooldeen, Arab News
Last updated: 07th
June 2008
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