There is hardly an aspect of the tourist industry that has not been dealt with before in the new tourism policy just published by the relevant ministry. That notwithstanding, it is a well-crafted document, giving well-grounded directions for the further development of an industry that makes a substantial contribution to the island’s economy in terms of direct revenue and employment.
Parts of the document, especially that dealing with the management of numbers, could have been put in simpler language. However, what will eventually count most is the action taken for the industry to keep moving on the lines that will help it expand in the right direction.
The policy has three guiding principles: managing visitor numbers; raising the level of quality across the tourism value chain, and reducing seasonality.
“Managing visitor numbers” can be somewhat tricky and understanding precisely what the writers want to convey in their report is made a bit more difficult than it should by the manner in which the goal is explained:
“Managing visitor numbers is based on a fluid approach to this sensitive issue by allowing the market to seek and find sustainable equilibriums by taking into account a mix of factors including the utilisation of fixed and variable components of tourism supply beyond peak periods, such as bed-stock, airline seats, restaurant covers, visitor attraction capacities, transportation networks and coastal resorts and beaches among others.”
Thankfully, the rest of most of the document is clearer.
The emphasis on quality is well placed, particularly the point that it ought to be embedded in all aspects, ranging from mentality to attitude and from the most basic of free amenities to the most expensive of services.
It is in the observance of the most basic requirements that Malta fails most and where it has been unable to make the kind of progress that matches that registered in other sectors. The island has built a first-class airport and cruise liner terminal and can today boast of a range of good hotels and restaurants but such basic requirements such as maintenance of public places and cleanliness lag far behind what the average tourist would expect.
The tourism ministry could have spotlighted these problems in stronger terms. When commenting on tourist zones, for instance, it makes this remark: “Poor visual quality, which, at times, is the result of mediocre design and degraded streetscapes, is one concern that needs attention.” For “poor visual quality” read sheer ugliness. There is plenty of it, not just in tourist zones but in so many other places as well.
It is well to ensure that tourist zones are given the attention they deserve – and they do indeed deserve much greater attention than they are getting at present – but most tourists do not just stay in tourist zones. Since the island is very small, they venture out to explore other towns and villages and, in the spring, the countryside too, where they are likely to be appalled by the mounds of rubbish scattered in idyllic places. Or, they may well be scared off by hunters’ aggressive language if they unknowingly walk onto ‘their territory’.
The ministry recognises, as expected, that the “level of cleanliness is hugely important” and that the noise and dust pollution from the construction industry “need to be well monitored”. Controlled would have been closer to the mark.
Whatever policy or action plan is drawn up will remain difficult to raise the tourist satisfaction score unless the authorities first ensure that the country tackles the most basic issues.