Joint Working Group on tourism

The Barents Euro-Arctic Region is an attractive destination for international tourism. The significance of the tourism as a source of livelihood has grown considerably during the past decades.  Tourism business employs a lot of people thus providing income and welfare. This is very important especially in sparsely populated areas, where tourism is sometimes the only developing source of livelihood.

The Joint Working Group on Tourism was established to develop tourism business in the BEAR and to promote ecologically, socially and culturally sustainable tourism. In practice this means promoting multilateral co-operation and joint projects, networking and exchanging information and best practices.

The objectives of the JWGT are defined in the mandate. They include:

• to increase the international awareness of and interest in the Barents Euro-Arctic Region (BEAR) and thus promote incoming tourism to the area
• to promote the entrepreneurship and employment in the field of tourism in order to increase tourism revenue in the BEAR
• to promote development and realization of cross-border tourist projects
• to improve preconditions for tourism development in the BEAR e.g. by improving accessibility (flight and railway traffic),  developing all year round tourism and developing border crossing formalities
• to maintain the unique tourism attractions of the BEAR by promoting the sustainable tourism development and by adapting to the challenges caused by the climate change
• to build, develop, promote and market authentic high quality joint products based to the local cultures and traditions of the Barents Euro-Arctic Region, e.g. the cultures and traditions of the indigenous peoples
• to co-operate in fields of tourism education and research in order to recognise and spread good practices

The initiative to establish a Joint Working Group on Tourism (JWGT) for Barents region made by the Russian Ministry of Tourism was officially approved by the Committee of Senior Officials at its meeting 18 - 19 February 2009. The Barents Regional Committee supported the initiative in Kirkenes meeting 23. – 24.9.2008 and the JWGT was established. The Russian Ministry of Tourism was appointed as the chairman of the working group and Finnish Lapland as the regional co-chair.

The Joint Working Group on Tourism works on both national and region levels. The national level will provide information on the current state policy in this sphere, plans, programs, national legislation and amendments. The regional level is implementing the co-operation in practice.

Mandate  of the JWGT

Documents


Chairs for the period 2008 – 2010:

Valery Korovkin
Federal Agency of Tourism
E-mail: valery.korovkin@ropnet.ru 

Satu Luiro (regional co-chair)
Tourism Coordinator, Regional Council of Lapland
P.O.B 8056, FI-96101 Rovaniemi, Finland
E-mail: satu.luiro@lapinliitto.fi
Tel . +358 400 124 029

JWGT contact members in each country or region:

Norway
Arne Trengeraid
Troms Reiseliv AS
E-mail: arne@visittroms.no 

Sweden
Kairi Pääsuke
County Administrative Board of Norrbotten
Tel. +46 (0)920 943 10
Mob. +46 (0)70 569 63 49
E-mail: kairi.paasuke@lanstyrelsen.se 

Finland
Satu Luiro
Regional Council of Lapland
E-mail: satu.luiro@lapinliitto.fi

Russia

Ivan Stulakov
Minister of Economic Development of the Republic of Komi
108, Internatsionalnaya St., Syktyvkar, Komi, Russia
Tel.: +7 8212 21 45 08, Fax: +7 8212 24 43 05
E-mail: minek@rkomi.ru

Galina Platova
Yasavey Nenets Association