The fair will be held in the Spanish capital for the second year in the midst of a health crisis; The Dominican Republic is a Partner Country in this version and President Abinader will attend
For the second consecutive year, the International Tourism Fair (Fitur) will be held in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic and with rigid measures and controls, in an effort to avoid contagion. Doing so represents a challenge, but at the same time it sends the message that “we have to live with the health crisis”.
According to the organizers, everything is ready to receive those who will attend the Madrid Trade Fair Institute (Ifema) between January 19 and 23, the place where the event is traditionally hosted.
This year’s edition -number 42- will bring together a total of 6,933 participants with the presence of all the autonomous communities, companies and destinations of 107 countries, 70 of them with official international representation, headed by the Dominican Republic, which this time participates as Country Partner Fitur 2022. There will be 600 exhibitors; the presence of Dominican President Luis Abinader is expected.
Ifema has said that to guarantee the normal celebration it will reinforce health controls and take extreme security measures: It will require the European digital covid certificate, its presentation, from all participants from affiliated countries and, from third-country participants, the same requirement requested in border to obtain the “QR Spain Health” that allows entry into Spain.
It will also carry out capacity control in all the pavilions, with automated people counting systems, and with an intelligent digital system for the analysis of spaces, capacity and behavior of attendees, controlling crowds.
It will require the mandatory use of a mask inside the facilities and temperature taking controls.
Daring to carry out Fitur seeks -in addition- to send the message that tourism must recover its leadership as a pillar of development. It has been reported that the facilities will be equipped with an advanced and powerful ventilation system that guarantees the elimination of air recirculation, its filtration and complete renewal every 20 minutes.
Fitur, which in 2021 was held in May, and not in January, as is tradition, closed by then with the participation of 5,000 companies from five continents, the presence of 55 countries -37 of them with official representation-, as well as the 17 autonomous communities of Spain.
There were figures that exceeded 62,000 attendees, 42,000 professionals and an estimate of more than 20,000 visits from the public during the weekend.
It was a movement of arrivals to Madrid for the event that generated an economic impact of approximately 100 million euros in the city, according to official estimates.
To the numbers of the last version of the fair we must add the digital visitors, which totaled more than 40,000, thanks to the launch of this first hybrid edition of the activity, which contributed substantially to giving Fitur a greater international reach, with presence from almost a hundred countries represented and to offer possibilities for “networking” or business and professional meetings.
The activity had wide coverage, if one takes into account that around 2,500 journalists from 33 countries had been accredited by then. Fitur is the first annual event for world tourism professionals and the leading trade fair for inbound and outbound markets in Ibero-America.
It is a unique forum to promote brands, present new products and learn about the latest trends in the tourism sector. This time, Fitur will occupy eight Ifema pavilions, where representatives from some 100 countries will gather.
José Vicente de los Mozos, president of the Executive Committee of Ifema, has told the media that this edition of Fitur will mark a turning point in tourist activity, and even more so at the start of a year in which they have deposited great hopes for the take-off of the tourism business on a global level.
Invited member What does it mean?
In this 2022 version, in which the Dominican Republic is a Partner Country, the Caribbean nation has a tourism expansion strategy based on its Country Brand, which it will deploy in that space.
In addition to President Luis Abinader, the Minister of Tourism, David Collado, will attend. The latter was already in Madrid in recent days, in matters of assembly and preparation, including a press conference. Collado, in a message posted on his Instagram on Thursday, reported that from Tourism the official delegation was reduced to 12 people, and made it clear that the institution will not cover the expenses of the media, journalists or businessmen, but has provided accreditations to professionals. that they need it.
The figure of “Socio Fitur”, which has been incorporated for several years, establishes a wide field of joint action in the most significant areas of promotion and communication of the tourism industry event. The collaboration of the Partner Country contributes to creating a close link with the sum of the brands “Dominican Republic, It has Everything” and Fitur, which will allow the country to take advantage of and make even more profitable the promotional potential of the event for the world .
Thus, the Dominican Republic, which in 2019 had already been a partner of the fair, will have the best international showcase to promote its values as a tourist destination and highlight the warmth of its climate and the hospitality of its people and its connectivity with more than 1,400 airports in more than 170 countries.
People’s Support
The Banco Popular Dominicano has reaffirmed its commitment to the reactivation of tourism in the Dominican Republic. El Popular is the leading bank in financing the tourism industry in the Caribbean nation. As of May 2021 (when version 41 of Fitur was carried out), it had a financing portfolio for the tourism sector of more than RD$51.5 billion.
That Popular credit portfolio for tourism amounted, as of September 2021, to more than 44% of the financing granted by the entire national financial system, with nearly 800 clients, distributed throughout the value chain that makes up this sector. Specifically, this time the Banco Popular delegation present at the fair will hold thirty meetings with investors and international hoteliers with interests in the Dominican Republic.
An important delegation from the country is attending Fitur this year, made up of hoteliers, commercial banks and government officials, including the Ministry of Tourism and the Airport Department (DA).
