Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The First Uzbek-Indian international Congress of guides was held in Tashkent on 4 August 2019 in order to increase the tourist flow from India to Uzbekistan and increase the human resources of the Republic. The event was organized by the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for tourism development, Training and consulting center of tourism together with the Federation of national guides of India.

The Congress was attended by guides of the two countries, representatives of state administrations in the field of tourism and culture, tourism organizations, as well as domestic and foreign media.

The forum was opened by the acting first Deputy Chairman of the State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan on tourism development Ulugbek Kasimhodjaev:

“Uzbekistan and India are connected by historical and cultural ties, common customs and traditions, which gives impetus to the further expansion of bilateral cultural and economic cooperation. This, in turn, contributes to the constructive and consistent development of cooperation between our countries in the field of education and tourism. The Uzbek-Indian Congress of guides became the first platform for further improvement and stimulation of our friendly and partnership relations. Therefore, we must work together to create joint projects and make more precise decisions for their implementation. We expect that each participant of the Congress will get something for himself – new knowledge, contacts, connections and a new impetus for building or developing his business and direction, and we believe that such events contribute to the differentiation of tourism products and the development of MICE tourism in our countries,” he said.

According to the head of the Federation of tourist guides of India Mr. Ajay Singh Kumar, our countries are at a very important stage of development and strengthening of historically friendly Uzbek-Indian relations.  – "Uzbekistan is a strategic partner for India and a promising tourist destination for Indian tourists. The Congress is attended by 170 representatives of the tourism business of India, who want to get acquainted with the tourism potential of your country and, in the future, to promote it in India and thus contribute to the increase of tourist flow to your hospitable country. Also, we are pleased to share our experience with our colleagues from Uzbekistan in the preparation of guides and their professional activities, as we attach great importance and consider them "Ambassadors of peace". We hope that the Congress was the start for our further relations and implementation of joint projects", – said Ajay Singh Kumar.

As part of the business program of the Congress, breakout sessions were held on topical issues related to the promotion of cultural and historical heritage and natural resources of Uzbekistan, diversification of the tourist product and the development of new excursion programs for Indian tourists, improvement of the system of training qualified guides, exchange of human resources and much more.

In addition, the tour operators of the two countries were able to establish a direct constructive dialogue and conclude bilateral agreements on B2B platforms.

As a result of the Congress, an agreement was reached in which representatives of the Federation of tourist guides of India will take an active part in improving the skills of guides of Uzbekistan and create conditions for their training in India.