On Saturday 13 August, an educational walk around Ta’ Cenc was organised by the Ceratonia Foundation and a number of NGOs. The event was disrupted at the starting line by the co-owners of Ta’ Cenc who had a gate illegally placed there just hours before the well-advertised event was due to commence to impede our access. The entrance was also guarded by police officers. I was invited to give a talk on alternative tourism for Gozo at this event, one that I obviously was unable to deliver. I am therefore taking the occasion now to share with you my thoughts on a tourism strategy for Gozo in this article, hoping to reach a wider audience in the process. When you are a Green there is always a silver lining in every cloud, let alone a passing one.

As I have written previously, Gozo has far more untapped potential for the prospective tourist than Malta. The island’s charm, even after three decades of frequent, excessive and sometimes savage development, is still indisputable. I visit the island for work and pleasure eight to 10 times a year, and each time I discover a new side to its charm; Gozo’s beauty truly beckons. Tourism to Malta during the last five years has suffered the twin maladies of dismal arrivals and lower spending; Gozo has suffered even more, most of the time in silence.

A workable and feasible strategy for the whole tourism sector is well overdue. The Malta Tourism Authority has (better late than never) promised a branding exercise for Malta. A brand is essentially a commercial commitment that the product/service provider makes to customers through the use of visuals like trademarks and logos. It should encapsulate the marketing objectives through the promise the provider makes to existing and prospective customers; a promise that must be kept.

When Croatia brands itself as “The Mediterranean as it once was”, visitors expect a pristine, almost forgotten Mediterranean. Should Croatia develop in the haphazard manner Malta and Gozo have over the last decades, the promise made will be broken and the brand turns negative. Gozo will need specific branding if it is to stand a chance of competing as a separate destination.

In order to formulate a brand for Gozo, it is necessary to analyse the core and unique benefits the island can offer its visitors. Now here lies the problem. When attempting to identify the core benefits of the island there is a tendency to exaggerate and romanticise certain aspects of the island; “M’hawnx isbah minn Ghawdex” (there is nowhere more beautiful than Gozo)-type expressions might inflate the ego of many of us, but it will not boost tourist arrivals or spending on the island: Besides it is important to recognise that there is (and will indeed never be) one issue that will work the magic. We Maltese have the unfortunate tendency of clinging to wishful dreams when facing a crisis. Just to take an example; the CHOGM 2005 event is a wonderful occasion for Malta’s tourism, granted. However, on its own it will not be the industry’s saving grace considering the weak state of the industry. The new sea-passenger terminal at Mgarr could be impressive apart from expensive; however, it will not add one tourist to Gozo if does not fit in with the overall strategy for tourism.

So what is unique about Gozo? I might disappoint many of you when I say that I believe Gozo is not unique in any one aspect. Those who believe that diving tourism, on its own, is the long-term solution are just as wrong as those who profess that the development of agro-tourism (albeit grossly unexploited) is the miracle cure. Let us be realistic. Gozo boasts some lovely diving sites, but there are far more impressive ones a few hours away in the Red Sea. Agro-tourism can become an attractive niche, however Gozo will never be able to offer the same standards as Tuscany or Andalusia (in Spain). Similarly, the island could develop a profitable niche in walking-tourism (trekking) if organisations like the Ramblers Association are listened to (not just heard). However, Gozo is never going to offer world-class walking holidays. Another niche that is under-developed is Gozo’s history and archaeology, which are truly remarkable but realistically they must face stiff competition not just from nearby destinations such as Rome and Madrid, but even from Malta itself. Gozo’s beaches and bays have a unique charm, but they already face severe competition from many established destinations in the Mediterranean and a serious threat from developing and prospective destinations on the Adriatic and North African coasts. The ecology of Gozo as a tourist attraction is completely unexploited. However, even the Greens are realistic and believe that ecology alone is not going to bring the large numbers that Gozo so needs.

Any business consultant will tell you that competition can be carried out on the basis of three things; cost, product differentiation and niche development. Competing on cost is the quickest route to oblivion – Tunisia has taught us that lesson. Competing on product differentiation involves a lot of imagination and investment; both are sadly scarce. The only route to competing effectively is the development of niche markets. At first sight, the above analysis tends to reveal that Gozo may be the jack of all tourist niches but the master of none. Despite this reality, there still exists a uniqueness about the island that is subtle, but could, if properly exploited, become the focal point of differentiation in product Gozo.

Gozo is different because it is a microcosm of the Mediterranean. In a few square kilometres the island can offer a complete Mediterranean holiday. Let us take some examples. Rome has a mind-boggling history but an unimpressive sea and an embarrassing ecology. North Africa will soon outdo us in “sand and sea” tourism for the bucket and spade brigade, however they do not have anything close to the history and archaeology of Gozo. Croatia, I am told, offers a unique Mediterranean holiday; however we have a head start in tourism management and the added advantage of a good knowledge of the English language. One might be tempted to say that destinations like Greece can offer everything that Gozo has to offer, at a competitive price. Possibly. However, Greece cannot offer the sun, history, ecology, archaeology, agro-tourism, trekking in 45 square miles. It is very difficult, if not outright impossible, to enjoy all these activities in a place like Greece in a weeklong holiday. In Gozo however it is all very possible, indeed more possible than in Malta. Imagine this product offering:

Day 1: Diving – Hondoq ir-Rummien. Day 2: Ecology – A visit to Ta’ Cenc nature park. Day 3: History/Archaeology – Tour of San George’s Basilica, the Cittadella, Ggantija Temples and Ninu’s Cave (or Xerri’s Grotto). Day 4: Sun and Sea – Sunbathing at Ramla Bay. Day 5: Agro-Toursim – A day enjoying Gozo’s agronomic delights. Day 6: Trekking – Late afternoon walk across Sanap cliffs. Day 7: Do as you please (recommended a visit to the open market)

Now think. Which destination can offer such a complete Mediterranean holiday all in one week? What Gozo needs is the proper development of these niches that typify the Mediterranean experience plus clever packaging and marketing these niches into a saleable product. Gozitan entrepreneurs have the capital; the government must find the energy and organisation expertise. We must market the island beyond Europe. We should be selling it in the Americas and the affluent countries of the near and Far East. The island could be their first glimpse of the Mediterranean. I would brand Gozo as “The Mediterranean in one Week!”

Edward Fenech is the spokesperson on Finance, the Economy and Tourism of Alternattiva Demokratika – The Green Party