Based at the Meliá Internacional Hotel in the Cuban spa city, the event represents a great opportunity to unite all the participating nations in a common objective aimed at education and professionalization on the organization of events.

The Minister of Tourism of Cuba, Juan Carlos García, stated that currently the events industry represents a priority segment in the recovery strategy and economic growth of the Latin American region and therefore seeks to promote inclusion, transformation and professional development.

For Cuba, the possibility of serving for the third time as venue for a Cocal Congress, after doing so in 1998 and 2000, constitutes a way of demonstrating the nation’s capacities in terms of organizational savoire-faire for internationally relevant events, such as fairs, exhibitions and contests of any type, he said.

García argued the Greater Antilles has a wide infrastructure of hotels and technologies necessary to host any event and pointed out that in the country there are professionals with experience in incoming travel agencies who, together with the new non-state actors, make of the country a worthy headquarters.

The president of Cocal Luis Ricardo Martínez thanked Cuba for the hospitality and organizational level of all the pre-congress processes, including successful completion of the forum for student leaders last Tuesday.

Martínez said promoting event tourism is a premise of the contest, which has representatives from Colombia, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Argentina, the United States, Guatemala, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Canada, Spain, the United Kingdom, Uruguay, Venezuela and the host Cuba.

The 39th Congress of the Federation of Congress Organizing Entities of Latin America will last until tomorrow in order to form a network of professionals that facilitates networking, transformation, inclusion and professional development.

ef/rgh/ads