KASHI: The Tourism Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) have finalised and approved the Joint Action Plan for implementing the agreement between the governments of the SCO member states on the cooperation in tourism.
G. Kishan Reddy, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region, Government of India chaired the meeting of heads of SCO tourism administrations held in ‘Kashi’ (Varanasi).
The approved Joint Action Plan has the following prioritised components –
- Promotion of the SCO tourism brand.
- Promotion of the cultural heritage of the SCO Member States in tourism.
- Sharing and Exchange of information and digital technologies in tourism.
- Promotion of mutual cooperation in medical and health tourism.
- Improving the quality of services.
As per the agreed Joint Action Plan, the member countries will undertake various activities such as SCO tourism exhibition, SCO food festival, webinar & seminar on tourism, conference and expert session on promotion and development of tourism in the region.
‘Kashi’ has been declared as the First Tourism & Cultural Capital of SCO. This recognition will bring the city to a greater prominence in the global tourist map. The initiative will garner more attention by highlighting the spiritualism, mysticism, and learning of Kashi which is also the cradle of Indian civilization. The next meeting of the SCO Heads of Tourism Administrations will be held in Kazakhstan in 2024.
Four bilateral meetings of India with China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan were also held on the sidelines of the meeting.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is an intergovernmental organization founded on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai. The SCO currently comprises eight member states (China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan).
