tourism TOURISM SECURITY S
Qatar Tourism Authority
concludes training workshop
on tourism security
Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) recently concluded
a two-day training workshop entitled “Preparing
a model to establish and successfully operate a
tourism security unit”, in co-operation with the United
Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).
Ahmed Abdallah Al Nuaimi, chairman of QTA,
delivered the opening address for the two-day
workshop, and was followed by Amr Abdel-Ghaffar,
the UNWTO regional representative for the Middle
East. In attendance were a number of lecturers and
participants from Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman,
Yemen, Lebanon, Jordan and the UNWTO.
Brigadier-General Thabet Kamal Al Naser, director
of the department for planning and organisation in
the Jordanian Ministry of Interior, spoke on Jordan’s
experience in the field of tourism security for the
first three sessions of the workshop. He dealt with a
variety of topics within tourism security, including the
preservation of tourist facilities and security training
mechanisms.
During his opening comments, Mr Al Nuaimi said:
“We have decided to join the UNWTO in holding this
training workshop as a point of convergence for all
specialists in the field of tourism security from Qatar
and the GCC countries. This workshop will facilitate
the exchange of technical expertise on tourism
security, while providing the State of Qatar and its
fellow GCC countries with the knowledge base for
establishing their own sophisticated tourism security
units – an important element in boosting tourism in
our countries.”
The chairman added: “In order to provide tourists
32 incentiveworld.com Vol. 9 No. 4 2009
with quality service, we must pursue our desired
security objectives without causing visitors to feel
that their movements or their personal freedoms, in
consistence with our own customs and values, have
been hindered or restricted in any way.”
This workshop is the implementation of one of a
series of training plans that have been undertaken by
the Qatar Tourism Authority in its quest for human
resource development in the tourism sector. QTA
adopted this comprehensive training plan as a result of
a Qatar summit on the challenges of human resources
in tourism, which was held in Doha in April 2009.
Mr Abdel-Ghaffar said: “Our predictions for the year
2020 indicate that the Middle East in general, and the
Arab Gulf in particular – to the extent that it enjoys
security and stability – will not only be part of the
anticipated growth of international tourism, but that
they will far exceed the average global tourism growth
rate.”
He added: “As such, we must provide reassurance
to the growing number of visitors at various tourist
destinations in our countries. In order to provide this
reassurance, we must transition from the incomplete,
sporadic application of the concept of tourism
security to the holistic, integrative, and highly coordinated
employment of this concept on the ground.
Furthermore, we must strengthen the partnerships
necessary for reconciling the requirements of safety
and security on the one hand, and the need to facilitate
the movement of visitors on the other.”
Tourism security has become a fundamental
requirement and vital component of the tourism
industry across the globe,
particularly in those
countries where the tourism
industry is considered to be
the forefront of achieving
sustainable development
and transitioning to a green
economy. The existence of
a mature tourism security
branch has become one of
the most important factors
to the flourish of the tourism
industry and tourist appeal
around the world. �
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