Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 15
By Anvar Mammadov – Trend:
It is necessary to regulate the activity of Arab entrepreneurs setting up tourism companies in Azerbaijan, said Nahid Bagirov, chairman of Azerbaijan Association of Tourism (AzTA).
"No country strives to open its tourism company in the territory of another country. The tendency is peculiar only to Arab countries. The factor has become quite problematic for Azerbaijan. We have repeatedly voiced our disagreement. These entrepreneurs are unaware of either history or culture of Azerbaijan. What could they tell their tourists? At the same time, such steps harm local tourism companies, which lose clients due to Arab countries. The majority of these companies make false accounting, thus damaging the state budget," Bagirov stressed.
He noted that the Association has appealed to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in connection with the mechanism of regulating the activity of tourist companies, hotels and guides.
"We are drafting a register of tourism companies and I hope it will be ready soon. All companies, guides and hotels will be committed to get registered here. We ought to preserve the image of our county and safeguard the local tourism sector from incompetent participants in the market," Bagirov noted.