Unfortunately, the Mediterranean area has recently been frequently making the headlines for the wrong reasons, and what is most disconcerting is the fact that, as yet, there appears to be no end to it all.
In the face of these developments, many people have passionately put forward ways of stopping such tragedies becoming the order of the day across the Mediterranean and, accordingly, have presented a myriad of strategies for consideration by the international community. However, many of them have not been able to see the wood for the trees in their attempts to find a quick fix because, in fact, the tragedies here do not revolve around illegal immigration alone.
Key matters include the situation being experienced by many who are left unemployed – including young people who have begun to lose hope in the future; the conflicts that arise due to power-struggles and intolerance and the loss of dignity experienced by all those who, as a result of social and economic misery, have ended up victims of the darker side of society and the economy.
A lot has been said and done and, while it is important to address emergencies, no one seems to have identified a long-term sustainable solution for the Mediterranean. Indeed, it is recognised by everyone that this challenge is definitely not an easy one. The Mediterranean Sea is one of the rare borders in the world that separates two adjacent areas with opposite demographic characteristics and contrasting levels of development. This region, through its diversity, is representative of the rest of the planet and is thus a life-size laboratory for the World Vision exercise.
In the meantime, Mediterranean countries are undergoing intensive demographic, social, cultural, political, economic and environmental changes that are giving rise to various questions: Where will these changes lead? What lies ahead for the Mediterranean countries? How will they confront the ever-increasing difficulties being encountered? The good news is that the Mediterranean has a great story to share with the rest of the world – a story that has placed the Mediterranean region at the top of the preference list of yesterday’s – and, increasingly today’s and tomorrow’s – travellers. And this, we believe, is the Mediterranean solution: tourism.
Tourism is a powerful motor that drives economies, sustains environmental conservation and leverages the development of societies. Tourism eradicates instability and exterminates warlords and power-mongers and because it feeds the many as it creates opportunities of hope for a better future. The foundations for tourism are already strong across the Mediterranean region, thus it presents itself as a feasible and pertinent long-term solution. If managed correctly, tourism is not only sustainable but is also flexible and easily adapted for specific economic and social realities. However, achieving quality tourism goals all across the Mare Nostrum region still has a long way to go but it is certainly not impossible.
For thousands of years, there have been strong bonds between the peoples of the Mediterranean, due to the geography and history linked by a common sea. Despite political, economic and cultural differences, we now need to rediscover the fact that our destinies lie in solidarity and, in particular, that joint action is imperative to improve the environment in which we live through tourism. A quick look at European history reveals that the principle being proposed here are very similar to the origins of the precursor of the European Union, the European Coal and Steel Community – an economic union created in 1952 that provided for the pooling of coal, iron and steel production in Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany. Indeed, coal, iron, and steel were key resources at the time in Europe and so presented themselves as the right basis for common interest that would lead to the achievement of a common goal: the attainment of economic growth and social development through stability and peace in the region.
In our case and in our times, tourism is definitely the economic and social powerhouse that is capable of not only circumventing differences between key players in the Mediterranean region but, more significantly, to emphasise the potential of strength through diversity. The key word here is ‘synergy’ and in all of this, we believe that Malta has a key role to play.
Why us? Because Malta’s economy depends on tourism and is therefore a model of how economic and social growth can be fuelled despite limited resources. Malta is too small to be considered either a political or economic threat to any of its neighbouring Mediterranean countries – hence is the right driver for such an initiative; it is a member of the European Union, therefore it has an important say in this critical economic bloc for the Mediterranean; and, despite its size, it the right passion and drive to act as a catalyst for the realisation of this vision.
Significantly, this proposal is not just pie in the sky. Six years ago, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association (MHRA) spearheaded the idea of an annual Mediterranean Tourism Forum, a conference with the objective of bringing together stakeholders in the tourism sector with a specific interest in the Mediterranean region. This initiative was an immediate success and the idea of tourism as the Mediterranean solution has spread like wildfire across various countries in the Mediterranean. With the help of the Government of Malta, we have now set up and are leading the Mediterranean Tourism Foundation to take it forward to the next step and the change that we all aspire to see.
On 1st and 2nd March, the fifth Mediterranean Tourism Forum will be held at the Malta Hilton. Its theme will be ‘Mediterranean BLUE’ and over 1,000 participants from 30 countries are expected to attend. For more information and registration, please access www.medtourismforum.com and quote code ‘#independent’ for limited available tickets to access all Forum events FREE worth over €600.