Cooperation of Free Trade Zone Hotels during Nowruz with the 09629 System / Let's Create Synergy by Bridging Between Organizations / Introducing 8 Iranian Villages for World Registration

According to the Mehrnews reporter, Ali Asghar Shalbafian, the Deputy Minister of Tourism, stated at this brainstorming session, held on the sidelines of the "Welcoming Nowruz and the Holy Month of Ramadan" conference at Baba Taher Hotel: The presence of the President and the visit of half of the cabinet members to the tourism exhibition signifies national and governmental attention to the tourism sector, which we must utilize and plan for. He emphasized the importance of a demanding approach towards external structures and utilizing the capacity of other organizations by presenting an agenda, adding: We can create synergy by bridging. We must also speak what we believe is right to facilitate and advance affairs. Shalbafian highlighted the importance of marketing and education, stating that they lead to innovative and creative work. The Deputy Minister of Tourism added: I personally follow up on investment matters. I have put 15 four-star hotels and 17 five-star hotels on my agenda and am pursuing their affairs to obtain facilities and support. He emphasized the importance of facilitating investment, continuing: We currently have 97 trillion Tomans worth of projects over 60% complete that require facilitation and support and must be prioritized. Shalbafian mentioned the holding of an investment conference next year and emphasized the preparation of infrastructure, obtaining necessary permits, and municipal incentives. He pointed out that yesterday, a good resolution was approved in the General Culture Council with the presence of representatives from 20 organizations. He added: This resolution will be the basis for work related to fasting and hijab during the Nowruz holidays of 1403. The Deputy Minister of Tourism stated that the holidays will continue until April 13th and pointed to the need for provincial planning until that time. Shalbafian continued: Also, according to the memorandum of understanding signed with the free trade zones, hotels in these areas are obligated to cooperate with the 09629 system. He concluded by emphasizing the importance of utilizing the opportunity of world registration for villages for branding and undertaking the necessary actions in this regard. Making Necessary Arrangements Considering the Overlap of Nowruz 1403 Holidays with the Holy Month of Ramadan Continuing the meeting, Naghizadeh, Director General of Tourism Services Supervision and Evaluation, presented points related to the responsibilities of this general directorate. He emphasized the need to make necessary arrangements considering the specific conditions of this year, noting the overlap of the Nowruz 1403 holidays with the Holy Month of Ramadan. Supervisory visits to travel agencies, hospitality establishments, and alternative accommodations such as guest houses, and price monitoring based on services and ratings were among the other points emphasized by Naghizadeh in this session. He added that the general framework for supervision is ready and will be announced by the Deputy Minister of Tourism next week. Last year, 160,000 calls were made to the 09629 system, of which 700 were complaints, and half of the complaints were related to hospitality establishments. This year, supervision must be intensified. Naghizadeh concluded his remarks by emphasizing the importance of promoting the 09629 system. The Director General of Tourism Services Supervision and Evaluation pointed to the government's approach towards the electronification of affairs and emphasized the issuance of permits through the portal. Moslem Shujaei, Head of Marketing and Foreign Tourism Development, referred to the evaluation of provincial performance in advertising and marketing and mentioned the holding of training courses as important programs of this general directorate. He raised points such as paying attention to events in content creation, identifying content creators in the provinces, and utilizing their capacity. Ahmad Tajari, Director General of Investment in Tourism Model Regions, emphasized supervision over the issuance of permits through the National Permit Issuance System. He pointed out that one of the 20 support resolutions in the area of legal investment incentives pertains to municipalities and stressed the use of this opportunity. He added that since municipalities prepare their budgets in February to present to the city council, this golden opportunity should be utilized. Tajari mentioned the presentation of 600 packages and 1600 investment opportunities by the provinces at the tourism exhibition. He continued: Expo Tehran will be held from April 28th to May 2nd, and three thousand foreign companies are invited to attend this event, which is a good opportunity to present these packages. Packages must be prioritized and necessary permits obtained for presentation. Phasing large-scale projects according to the issued directive was another point raised by the Director General of Investment in Tourism Model Regions. Mehdi Baharvand, Head of the Tourism Products Development Group, referring to the criteria required for the world registration of villages, continued: So far, 130 villages have been world-registered, and this opportunity is a significant advantage for enhancing the tourism status of the province and the country. He added: Kandolus (Mazandaran), Bisheh (Lorestan), Abyaneh (Isfahan), Meymand (Kerman), Palangan (Kurdistan), Esfahak (South Khorasan), Fahraj (Yazd), and Qaleh Bala (Semnan) are the eight candidate villages this year for submission to the World Tourism Organization. Baharvand stated that having three initiatives is among the important criteria of this organization for the world registration of villages and emphasized it. Diako Abbasi, Secretary of the Tourism Health Steering Council of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts, presented a report on the field of health tourism and considered the performance of the joint provincial committee to be appropriate. Also, at this meeting, the deputy ministers of tourism from some provinces, including Khorasan Razavi, Tehran, Ardabil, Kurdistan, Sistan and Baluchestan, and Isfahan, shared their experiences and suggestions.