2023-10-29 08:41:22
SETIF – Experts participating in the international forum on thermal tourism, organized on Saturday in Sétif, agreed that this type of tourism has “today become an essential pillar of economic development due to the significant investment opportunities that he offers”.
Dr. Ahmed Belaïter, Algerian expert in thermal water therapy, underlined, in this context, that Algeria “has important thermal springs and a coastline of more than 1,600 km, which offers numerous opportunities and encourages investments in the field of medical tourism, whether thermal baths or thalassotherapy.
The same expert called for the continuation of exchanges of experiences between national experts or from outside the country, by increasing contacts between them.
Mr. Belaïter also indicated that the Sétif forum “constitutes an important opportunity to present the assets that Algeria has in terms of hydrotherapy, and to review investment opportunities in the field.”
The Jordanian expert, Ms. Maram Mahmoud Abdul Razzak, indicated, in a communication entitled “Spa tourism in Jordan”, that this activity constitutes one of the most important types of tourism due to the growing demand of people seeking spa treatments. thermal waters, comfort, rest and leisure.
This offers, according to her, “great investment opportunities useful for economic development”.
The same speaker considered that the Algerian experience in the field of thermal activity is “important” given the tourist assets, in general, and thermal assets, in particular. This requires, she said, “taking advantage of it by exploiting investment opportunities available in Jordan for trade between the two countries in this area.”
For his part, Dr. Abderraouf Abdennabi, Tunisian professor and expert in thalassotherapy, declared that Algeria “is distinguished by its numerous thermal sites and its thalassotherapy centers which predestine it to be a pioneer in the field.”
Mr. Abdennabi called for the development of a strategy to encourage investment in this branch of tourism, stressing that feverish tourism “is a pillar of domestic tourism and constitutes a priority given the increase in demand stimulated by the curative virtues of thermal waters.
Two workshops were organized on the occasion of this forum, the first focused on thermal resources in Algeria and the resulting investment opportunities, during which a rich debate was initiated around the question of structuring thermal projects. , investments within the framework of the partnership, the diversification of the use of febrile thermal waters and financing mechanisms for thermal projects.
Participants in the second workshop, dedicated to the “development and standardization of thermal and thalassotherapy practices”, addressed points linked to the modernization of thermal installations in operation and methods of exploiting thermal water between medical tourism and leisure tourism.
This international forum, the opening of which was chaired by the Minister of Tourism and Crafts, Mokhtar Didouche, saw the presence of the Director General of the Algerian Agency for the Promotion of Investment (AAPI), Omar Rekkache, the president of the Algerian Economic Renewal Council (CREA), Kamel Moula, representatives of the National People’s Assembly and the Council of the Nation, as well as the ambassadors of Saudi Arabia, Croatia and Bulgaria, and representatives of the embassies from Egypt, Turkey, Jordan and the Czech Republic.
The meeting aims to involve all stakeholders in the field of hydrotherapy, particularly local and foreign investors, in order to promote investment opportunities in this branch of tourism and to raise thermal spas and thalassotherapy centers to international standards.
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