Tiraspol, 27 December. /Novosti Pridnestrovya/. The government has approved a concept for the development of domestic and inbound tourism in Pridnestrovie for 2018-2020. The corresponding decree has been signed by the head of the government, Alexander Martynov.
The document aims to develop Pridnestrovie as an attractive tourist country. It will become a framework. It provides the analysis of the tourism industry, the main goals, tasks and methods of its improvement, as well as a set of government measures aimed at improving the efficiency of the policy in this sphere.
The Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic has rich natural and recreational, historical and cultural tourist resources. However, the current status of the industry does not correspond to the country's potential, the concept states. Thus, according to statistics, the share of tourism in GDP is only 0.02%, and the share of people employed in it is only 0.19%.
The major tourism service providers in the region are six agencies and nine individual entrepreneurs. In 2016, they served 18,190 excursionists and 320 tourists, which confirms the need to increase the attractiveness of the country for tourists.
Analysis of tourist flows has shown that 2,579,110 visitors crossed the country's border in 2016, most of them — 1,605,464 — came from Moldova. From Ukraine — 238,094; Russian Federation — 67,233; Romania — 5,616; Germany — 5,444; Israel — 4,098; Turkey — 3,210; Belorussia — 3, 103; Italy — 2,662; USA — 2,458; Bulgaria — 1,694; Great Britain — 1,674.
There are 1,700 archaeological monuments in Pridnestrovie from the Stone Age to the early Middle Ages and 349 monuments included in the State Register. In the meantime, 282 monuments in this register are in satisfactory condition and are of interest to foreign and local tourists.
There have been positive changes in the development of the tourist industry over the past 12 years. Among them are the restoration of the main tourist sites — Bendery Fortress and Glory Obelisk at the Kitskany bridgehead — the opening of historical and local lore museums, the publication of historical and local lore literature, including advertising booklets.
The concept provides for the implementation of a set of measures aimed at creating and developing a modern tourist industry in Pridnestrovie. The full text of the document is available on the government's website.
