The tourism secretariat this afternoon denied claims by the opposition spokesman for tourism that the government was not showing enough commitment for the touristic development of Gozo and the Qawra-Bugibba area.

The secretariat pointed out that Gozo is benefiting from various major infrastructural projects, such as new roads and the new ferry terminal, opened recently. Furthermore the authorities were holding various initiatives which made the sister island more attractive to tourists and Maltese visitors, the latest being Gozo 1234 which had seen 80,000 Maltese crossing over for the purpose

The Bugibba-Qawra area had also seen recent investment on a new perched beach and ongoing maintenance of the promenade from St Paul’s Bay to Bugibba. Various activities were being held in Bugibba and Qawra throughout the year by the Malta Tourism Authority and more infrastructural projects were earmarked for the zone. Some will be partly funded by the EU.

The secretariat pointed out that tourist arrivals in the first quarter of this year were up 22 percent over the same period last year. Tourist nights were up 13 percent and earnings from tourism had climbed by almost 5%.

The secretariat said that while such figures were encouraging, success for the tourism industry depended on the commitment and cooperation of all the stakeholders. The government, however, was committed to ensuring that access to Malta and the Maltese tourism product continued to improve.