From July 5 to July 9 of this year, in the city of Berlin (Germany) within the framework of the European Union Program Switch Asia: under the project «Promoting Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy production in the Community-Based Tourism Sector in Central Asia» a training tour was held for representatives of CBT from Central Asia.
This tour is organized by ACTED with the support of Mascontour, as well as the Association of Private Tourism Agencies of Uzbekistan (APTA), the Tajik Community Based Tourism Association (TCBTA) and the Kyrgyz Community Based Tourism Association(KCBTA).
The study tour was attended by 15 representatives of the Central Asian Union (5 participants each from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan). 5 MSMEs in the CBT sector in each country were selected by APTA, TCBTA and KCBTA according to the ACTED criteria under the EU Switch Asia Programme.
In particular, representatives of the CBT from Bukhara (Koh-i-noor family guest house), Samarkand (Fayz family guest house), Ferghana (Uvaysiy family guest house), Tashkent region (family guest house Kumushkon Saxovati) and the Republic of Karakalpakstan (Yurt camp).
The purpose of this study tour is to raise awareness of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) of СBT on sustainable consumption and production (SCP) practices, including the benefits of renewable energy/electricity technologies (RES/EE), training of trainers (ToT) which will further promote and integrate SCP practices into everyday behavior by educating CBT providers about sustainable consumption and production practices.
The participants of the training program mastered the following topics:
- Introduction to the meaning and importance of sustainable tourism;
- Ensuring stability in the way of the client;
- Implementation and management of sustainable development methods;
- Trends, demand and target groups in the field of sustainable tourism;
- Communication about sustainable travel: marketing and promotion;
- Certification and standardization.
CBT representatives who have been trained under the above program will conduct training seminars, each in their own region. They will use the experience gained and share specific ways to integrate SCP practices and behaviors into the day-to-day operations of MSMEs and be able to explain the specific benefits.