Digital solutions, if used in a "smart" way, create a new concept - smart tourism, enabling a high degree of interactivity and personalized access, which is one of the leading demands of the modern tourist, announced representatives of the Chamber of Commerce (PKCG).
Acting president of PKCG, Nina Drakić, said that the coronavirus pandemic had a negative impact on tourism, but also opened up opportunities for some new forms of business.
"The crisis can lead to a faster transformation of tourism in the direction of sustainable development, with new technologies and smart tourism solutions," Drakić said at the webinar on Smart Tourism.
The webinar was organized by PKCG in cooperation with the Embassy of Israel and with the support of the Ministry of Economic Development and the National Tourism Organization (NTO). The event opened up the possibilities of using the Internet and smart tourism technologies in order to better understand contemporary current events and changes in the tourism market.
"Given that the quality of the tourist offer, first of all, depends on the level and quality of tourist products, the interaction between tourist workers and tourists, and tourists and the destination, it is clear that the quality synergy of all factors is of crucial importance for creating a competitive tourist image of Montenegro", stated Drakić.
As reported by PKCG, she added that the development of the tourism industry is increasingly conditioned by the implementation of digital solutions.
Ambassador of Israel Yahel Vilan thanked the Chamber for the outstanding cooperation so far, which will surely continue on projects in the coming year.
"The embassy in Montenegro is non-resident and the focus of our work is on culture, supporting the economy and startups. We strongly support all initiatives aimed at strengthening entrepreneurship, the start-up community and innovation," said Vilan.
He apostrophized the role of tourism as the main driver of Montenegrin originality
"Your country is a popular destination for tourists from Israel, and I believe that a direct airline between Tel Aviv and Tivat will greatly contribute to their even greater visit," Vilan said.
The representative of the Ministry of Economic Development, Ivana Bulatović, reminded that Montenegro is the first country outside the European Union (EU) to adopt the Smart Specialization Strategy (S3) in 2019, one of whose priorities is sustainable and health tourism.
She emphasized that Montenegro, as an IPA partner, participates in the implementation of the SMARTMED - Empower Mediterranean for SMART Tourism project, whose goal is the development of the Mediterranean as an attractive, smart and inclusive destination.
"The main challenges that the SMARTMED project has to face are pronounced seasonality and the lack of effective cooperation between the main tourism actors. The main result of the SMARTMED project is the definition of a new business model of SMART tourism, which will be developed on the basis of conducted analyses, consultations with tourism actors, testing through pilot projects, as well as increasing the capacity for their implementation," said Bulatović.
She stated that the Ministry is investing great efforts in creating the Tourism Development Strategy until 2025.
"The strategy defines the strategic and operational goals that derive from them, because we have to work on diversifying the tourist product, improving services, developing human resources, digitalization and innovation," said Bulatović.
The deputy director of NTO, Aleksandra Maksimović, representing Montenegrin tourism potential, stated that Montenegro continuously invests in tourism, both on the coast and in the north, because it is one of the strategic branches of development.
"NTO is dedicated to the promotion of the Montenegrin destination, and due to the pandemic, we have launched a new global campaign with which we want to highlight the natural beauty of our country, apostrophize the connection between people and nature and present all this in the digital world," explained Maksimović.
Moderator Sanja Marković said that the tourism industry is closely connected and dependent on the development of information technology and the Internet.
"Digital transformation is a trend in tourism that has been going on for years and has affected every aspect of tourism, both from the perspective of users and service providers, and the pandemic caused by the coronavirus has only accelerated the process. The current situation in tourism is leading many tourism entrepreneurs to review their business through digital transformation, in order to use their potential and resources more efficiently," said Marković.
She added that the Internet provides new possibilities for the joint action of the physical and digital worlds.
"The Internet enables more direct and active interaction between tourists, tourist products and destinations. Creativity and innovation brought new solutions. Digitization is a term that will certainly characterize the tourism sector in the coming years, all under the imperative of smart tourism, which provides convenience and interactivity and offers personalized services to tourists," concluded Marković.
During the webinar, guests from Israel introduced the participants to the possibilities that information and communication technologies offer through smart tourism and presented current affairs and new trends and how to go through the digital transformation of tourism as quickly as possible.
Montenegrin businessmen also took part in the seminar, and through communication with the presenters, they were introduced to the details of the application of digital solutions in tourism and the possibilities for improving their business.
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