By Rafiq Vayani
DUBAI: Emirates has signed Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) at the Arabian Travel Market 2023 in Dubai with three tourism boards – Tourism Seychelles, Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) and the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau.
All three agreements reaffirm the airline’s commitment to the island-nations and outline key joint initiatives to promote trade and tourism to the respective countries.
The Seychelles
Emirates has been serving Seychelles since 2005, consistently contributing to the growth of its tourism industry. The airline’s commitment to the nation continues with the renewal of a decade-long partnership to promote tourism and broaden its appeal across Emirates’ global network of over 140 passenger destinations. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Ahmed Khoory, Emirates’ SVP Commercial West Asia & Indian Ocean, and Sherin Francis, Principal Secretary Tourism Department, Tourism Seychelles, in the presence of Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer.
The agreement outlines activities to boost visitation including trade shows, trade familiarisation trips, exhibitions, and workshops. Emirates will also support Tourism Seychelles’ award programme, Lospitalite Lafyerte Sesel, which recognises top operators and individuals for exceptional service standards.
Emirates currently operates two daily flights to the island-nation, and was the first international airline to resume passenger services to Seychelles in August 2020, coinciding with the country’s re-opening to international tourists.
Mauritius
Now in its 20th year of service to the island nation and 10th year of partnership with Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA), Emirates’ latest agreement includes initiatives designed to promote the nation’s tourism and trade industries.
The MoU was signed by Ahmed Khoory, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial West Asia & Indian Ocean, and Mr Arvind Bundhun, Director, MTPA, in the presence of Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer.
The successful partnership has allowed Emirates to support demand for travel to the island by showcasing it to customers across its global network. The renewed partnership will enable the airline to promote the country through its network of agents in key strategic markets, develop special packages designed to appeal to various customer segments, in addition to collaborating on joint familiarisation trips to raise awareness of the destination’s offerings to audiences in key feeder markets.
Mauritius continues to be an important destination for Emirates, and last year the airline celebrated 20 years of operations to island nation, which has seen more than 6.5 million passengers carried on the Dubai-Mauritius route since 2002. The airline currently provides two direct daily flights to Mauritius, both operated by its flagship A380 aircraft.
Sri Lanka
Emirates has pledged its renewed support to promoting tourism in Sri Lanka with an agreement that includes a host of initiatives designed to promote and play a key role in the revival of the nation’s tourism and trade industries, and comes as part of the airline’s long-standing commitment to Sri Lanka which now spans 37 years.
The MoU was signed by Ahmed Khoory, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial West Asia & Indian Ocean, and K.P.P. Siriwardana, Managing Director of Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, in the presence of Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer.
Signalling the deepening of a strategic cooperation between Emirates and Sri Lanka Tourism forged in 2022, the new MoU details joint initiatives and opportunities for collaboration, including developing programmes to boost tourism to the Indian Ocean nation by showcasing it to customers across its global network. The airline will also engage with its network of agents in key strategic markets to promote Sri Lanka, develop special packages tailored to new and existing traveller segments, in addition to collaborating on joint familiarisation trips to raise awareness of the destination’s many varied offerings in key feeder markets.
Emirates launched its services to Sri Lanka in 1986 and since then has carried more than 11 million passengers on the route. The airline currently provides two direct daily flights to Colombo and an additional daily service via Male. It is also the only international carrier to serve the country with First Class services.
