Kiribati Minister for Tourism Confirmed for SPTO Meetings

The Pacific Tourism Organisation welcomes confirmation that Honourable Michael Bootii Nauan, Minister for Tourism, Commerce, Industry and Cooperative (MTCIC) of Kiribati, will lead Kiribati’s delegation to the upcoming SPTO meetings in the Cook Islands:

• SPTO Board of Directors Meeting: Tuesday 1^st November
• Pacific Sustainable Tourism Leadership Summit (PSTLS): Wednesday 2^nd November
• SPTO Council of Tourism Ministers Meeting: Thursday 3^rd November

The Minister will be accompanied by SPTO Board Chairman and CEO of the Tourism Authority of Kiribati, Mr. Petero Manufolau. Hon. Nauan and Mr. Manufolau will also attend the inaugural Pacific Sustainable Tourism Leadership Summit (PSTLS), at which Hon. Nauan will be a panellist in a session titled “Enhancing Pacific resilience and competitiveness as a sustainable tourism destination, post COVID-19”. The Minister’s intervention in this session will focus specifically on Improving Air Connectivity for Small Island States.

Commenting on his attendance Hon. Nauan acknowledged the need for cooperation and communication, as countries in the region begin to reopen to tourism.

“We need to work together as one region, with revitalized commitment and transformed processes that support our progress towards achieving smarter, more sustainable, resilient and inclusive tourism”.

“With enhanced coordination and communication, we can increase engagement and awareness and build the capacity of tourism’s stakeholders. In this way, our industry can respond as needed to our local communities, our natural environments and importantly in times of crisis”, said Hon Nauan.

Adding to that, SPTO Chief Executive, Christopher Cocker, welcomed Kiribati’s confirmed attendance noting that it was encouraging to see more Tourism Ministers showing commitment to regional tourism transformation, through their attendance at the upcoming dialogues.

“It is heartening to see more Ministers coming on board to attend these important meetings that will include SPTO’s membership and other key tourism stakeholders. I am glad that Kiribati will be adding their unique and important perspective to these regional engagements and I hope to see more of SPTO’s Small Island States and Territories in the Cook Islands in November”, he said.