Agency of Protected Areas Plans to Expand Their Areas to 1 Million Hectares
Agency of Protected Areas of the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture Welcome to Georgia! Participated in the 6th Conference on Tourism and Hospitality held within the framework of the "National Tourism Award".
Tamar Khakhishvili, Deputy Chairperson of the Agency for Protected Areas, made a presentation on the future strategies, visions, impact and consequences of the pandemic.
This year, the theme of the conference, due to world developments, was dedicated to the impact of Kovid 19 on the tourism industry. Representatives of government and private institutions discussed the current challenges and opportunities of the tourism and hospitality industry in the context of the pandemic, introduced the anti-crisis plans and new trends to the conference participants. During the conference, B2B meetings were held between the representatives of the sector.
One of the priority directions of the Agency of Protected Areas of the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture is to create / establish, expand and develop protected areas in accordance with the best international experience. During the presentation on the future visions for the development of protected areas, the focus was on the Agency's immediate plans, including the expansion of protected areas to 1 million hectares, which is 17% of the total area of the country; For infrastructure projects such as opening a visitor center and administrative building in Pshav-Khevsureti National Park, Shatili, arranging a cave in Sataplia and a modern, eco-friendly, international standard lighting system; Talks focused on new ecotourism projects, including the opening of the Tsalka Canyon, the opening of the White Cave, and the construction of new ecotourism trails. During the presentation, global international recognition was noted, which includes the granting of UNESCO World Natural Heritage status to 4 protected areas of Georgia.
It is noteworthy that the Agency of Protected Areas actively cooperates every year and supports the project "Welcome to Georgia! National Tourism Award. "