MINSK, 25 September (BelTA) – Minsk Oblast and China's Guangdong Province signed a memorandum of cooperation in tourism and holding consultations during the visit of a delegation of Minsk Oblast to China timed to the Maritime Silk Road International Expo 2017, BelTA learned from the Minsk Oblast Executive Committee.
“We will hold consultations on the organization of tourist routes and groups to cater for our Chinese partners and aim at their demands. As far as we understood during the negotiations, ecotourism in farm tourism estates and hunting farms is especially popular. Other attractions are Lake Naroch and woods. There is demand for winter holidays in Belarus. We have specified the ski resorts Logoisk and Silichi as places for winter tourism,” said Yelizaveta Davelman, deputy head for investment at the Economic Committee of the Minsk Oblast Executive Committee.
In general, the agreement confirms both parties' mutual intention to take an active part in tourism promotion, support tourism companies and joint projects, take advantage of common tourism resources, regularly exchange visits, and develop tourism products together in order to commercialize them. Given that Belarus and China plan to declare 2018 the Year of Tourism, relevant agreements between regions are quite well-timed.
The upcoming inauguration of the Belarusian general consulate in Guangzhou (the capital of Guangdong Province) due by the year-end is expected to expand cooperation in tourism and other fields.
The Minsk Oblast delegation led by Deputy Minsk Oblast Governor Oleg Plavsky paid a visit to Guangdong Province from 19 to 22 September. The Belarusians held talks with local officials and businessmen. The sides signed a cooperation agreement back in 2012. They have outlined mutual interests and established contacts since then. Now Minsk Oblast and Guangdong Province are actively discussing cooperation in specific fields, in meat and dairy industry, in particular.
