Tourism News

KERALA TOURISM NEWSLETTER

Kerala revises Responsible Tourism Policy to make it a People’s Movement

Kerala will implement Responsible Tourism (RT) as a popular programme on the lines of the state’s successful literacy movement and decentralised planning, the Global Responsible Tourism Summit 2023 announced.

A declaration was drafted on the basis of ideas and proposals that emerged from two days of discussions at the February 25-28 conclave. It serves as an update on ‘Kerala RT Declaration of 2008’, Tourism Minister Mr P. A. Mohamed Riyas said.

“The focus is on making Kerala a better place with better people,” the minister said at the valedictory session of the four-day event at Kumarakom in Kottayam district. “RT brought in a new phase of human interaction, enabling us to go deeper into the roots of society.”

The 2023 Declaration, which was signed by the Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary Mr K. S. Srinivas and the Responsible Tourism Partnership & ICRT International Founder Dr Harold Goodwin, speaks about three kinds of responsibilities: social, economic and environmental.

A vital guiding principle will take care of regular assessment of economic impacts before developing new tourism projects. Preference will be for initiatives that benefit local communities and minimise negative impacts on livelihoods. The declaration calls for maximum economic benefits to the residents around any project by increasing linkages and reducing leakages by involving communities. Tourism will assist in poverty alleviation.

As for social responsibilities, local communities will be involved in planning, decision-making and capacity-building. To strengthen gender equality and ensure safe destinations for women as both hosts and guests, the State RT Mission will work with civic bodies and UN Women in all the programmes.

Under environmental responsibilities amid alarming climate change, the RT Mission will accord high priority to reducing green-house gas emissions. “Communities need investment to adapt to the consequences of climate change generated beyond Kerala,” it says, urging for sustainable use of resources amid minimal waste (particularly plastic) and optimal consumption. “Reduce, reuse and recycle” will be the mantra, with priority given to the restoration of buildings instead of building new ones.

The Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary Mr Srinivas welcomed the delegates to the summit featuring 70 speakers across 12 sessions at Lakesong resort. The RT Mission State Coordinator Mr K. Rupeshkumar proposed the vote of thanks at the session that saw a string of felicitation of delegates totalling 280.

The 2023 Declaration calls for the development of quality products that reflect the spirit of any tourist destination, and complement and enhance its value. Tourism must be marketed in ways that reflect the natural, cultural and social integrity of the destination.

Also, authorities should adopt equitable business practices, pay and charge fair prices, and build partnerships which may share and minimise risk, besides recruiting and employing staff with due recognition given to international labour standards. Further, the sector must provide appropriate and sufficient support to small, medium and micro enterprises to ensure that tourism-related enterprises thrive and remain sustainable.

To deliver equality of access for differently-abled hosts and guests, the RT Mission will endeavour to deliver equal access to people living with any kind of disability. The current technology should be accessible to all when it comes to tourism activities and experiences. Authorities must assess social impacts throughout the life cycle of the operation (planning and design of projects) in order to minimise negative impacts.

The Declaration endeavours to make tourism an inclusive social experience and ensure its access to all, including the vulnerable and the disadvantaged. The document calls for combating sexual exploitation, particularly of children. “Be sensitive to the host culture, while maintaining and encouraging social and cultural diversity,” it adds.

Government Support for Responsible Tourism in Kerala a model for the Whole World: Experts at RT Summit
Experts who participated in the Global Responsible Tourism Summit 2023 opined that Kerala's government support for Responsible Tourism activities is a model for the whole world. In the course of panel discussions held on various topics, a detailed analysis was conducted on the various elements of Responsible Tourism. 

The foreign representatives pointed out that the Kerala government's support accorded to the Responsible Tourism project for the last one-and-a half decades is commendable. Glynn O'Leary from South Africa said although South Africa has put forward the resolution of Responsible Tourism, it has not been able to make progress in this sector like Kerala has. He pointed out that Kerala has successfully implemented the challenge of taking the locals into confidence and going ahead with a business like tourism.

Kerala inks pact with UN body to empower Women in Tourism
Kerala has entered into an agreement with UN Women, boosting women-friendly activities in the state’s tourism sector by training stakeholders who include young representatives and civil organisations.

A Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Kerala Tourism Director Mr P. B. Nooh and the UN Women India representative Ms Susan Ferguson agreed to work towards promoting gender-inclusive tourism sites in the state. The Responsible Tourism Mission will be the implementing agency for the MoU.

Women-friendly tourism will be promoted by creating modules and capacity-building of relevant stakeholders, besides providing advisory support for baseline research, implementing women-friendly tourist destinations and supporting interventions to change prevalent discriminatory social norms.

The world body will help Kerala Tourism in developing reports and material related to women-friendly tourism and their publication. The MoU will strive to build synergies with other flagship programmes of the state and help in rectifying social attitudes that are checking gender-inclusive public spaces in tourism.

Tourism Minister Mr P. A. Mohamed Riyas said the MoU was in continuation of the state government’s renewed efforts towards women-friendly tourism since October last year. 

Ms Ferguson said women merited encouragement to work in tourism so as to instill a sense of security among the travellers to the state. 

To watch the summit, check : https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHNlbP81U7jcxiG5FrxlzNWbxJ-zpvfZU