A dialogue on tourism that will examine opportunities for collaboration and sustainable approaches to tourism will take place today (Thursday January 20).
Details
At the shared island dialogue, which is titled "Tourism on the shared island: Building on past success to create a sustainable future", tourism agencies, organisations and interest groups will look at the success of tourism cooperation on the island of Ireland, and discuss the best way to enhance opportunities for domestic and international tourists in the coming years.
The dialogue will hear from tourism industry workers about how enhanced cooperation can build on past successes, and will also focus on future challenges and opportunities for the tourism sector, particularly regarding the development of sustainable tourism.
The Shared Island Dialogue series was launched in October of 2020 as part of the government's Shared Island initiative to foster constructive and inclusive dialogue that engages with all communities and traditions on a shared future on the island of Ireland underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement.
Tourism Minister Statement
Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media Catherine Martin TD stated, "The tourism sector is already a shining example of what can be achieved when we work together on this island, with a shared purpose and for clear mutual benefit.
"Working together, we have been able to harness the natural beauty and tourism potential of the whole island offering exciting experiences for tourists while supporting communities across the length and breadth of the island. Visitors are able to arrive in Dublin and enjoy all that it has to offer, then head north to experience the Titanic, Giant's Causeway and Game of Thrones sites, before coming back south to visit the Skelligs or Spike Island, with some pit stops along the Wild Atlantic Way to break up the journey.
"Our task is to work in partnership for the full recovery of the tourism sector, north and south, not least by growing sustainable, on-island tourism, which is part of how we can better share the island.
"Through the Shared Island Fund, the government is already investing in the development of sustainable tourism infrastructure on the island. Funding for the cross-border Ulster Canal and Narrow Water Bridge projects will provide blueways and greenways that will grow sustainable tourism in the central and east border regions.
"We will continue to champion and support the growth of sustainable tourism across the island in the years ahead. Under the revised National Development Plan, the government committed to creating an island-wide greenway network, that will link the Atlantic coast with the eastern seaboard, and we will work with the Northern Ireland Executive on the development of new large-scale tourism opportunities: from marketing initiatives; to linking up the Wild Atlantic Way with the Causeway Coastal Route, and continuing on to create a coastal tourist trail along our eastern and southern coasts."
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