Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The website of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) has published an article on the regular Meeting of Tourism Ministers of the ECO Member States, Dunyo news agency reported.

The article reports that on 13 December, the fourth meeting of the ministers of tourism of the ECO states was held online, during which Shakhrisabz was chosen as the tourism capital of the ECO in 2024.

It is noted that the meeting was opened by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism and Cultural Heritage of Uzbekistan Aziz Abdukhakimov. “We are focused on improving the tourism infrastructure, the quality of services and their diversity in every region, city and district of Uzbekistan,” said Aziz Abdukhakimov.

He also mentioned that tourism serves as one of the main catalysts for growth and the strongest bridge that brings the people of the region together through the addition of culture, traditions and heritage. He noted the need to increase direct flights between Member States and enhance cooperation between regional stakeholders in the field of tourism for the development of the region.

Further, he emphasized the importance of training in the field of tourism and said that 25 students from ECO member countries received scholarships to study at the International University of Tourism "Silk Road" in Samarkand. The Minister also informed the delegations about the 25th session of the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization, which will be held in Samarkand, and invited all ECO member countries to take part in this important event.

ECO Secretary General Khusrav Noziri, welcoming the participants of the meeting, emphasized that the tourism sector was included among the important areas of interest of the ECO, priority for development in accordance with the Vision ECO-2025. Noted that the ECO region is home to 74 UNESCO-listed World Heritage Sites and has diverse tourism potential.

The ECO Secretary General noted that the simplification of border crossing procedures for foreign tourists, the easing and liberalization of the visa regime will contribute to the development of the tourism industry throughout the region.

Deputy Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Crafts of Iran Ali Asghar Shalbafyan informed the participants about the upcoming Tehran International Tourism Exhibition, which will be held on 7-10 February 2023.

The participants of the meeting adopted the Roadmap to promote accelerated recovery, safe and sustainable tourism development after COVID-19 in the ECO region as a common framework for cooperation between member states and selected the cities of Shakhrisabz in Uzbekistan and Erzurum in Turkey as the tourism capitals of the ECO for the 2024 and 2025, respectively.