The injection of resources by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has already begun to consolidate the MayaKa’an tourist destination, in the Mayan area of Quintana Roo.
Marisol Vanegas Pérez, State Secretary of Tourism, reported that in total the Global Environment Facility (GEF) will contribute 1.4 million dollars that will be used for training, promotion, and improvement of the ecotourism offer of MayaKa ‘an.
“The resources will be executed through UNDP, the State Secretariat of Tourism, and the Council for Tourism Promotion and Friends of Sian Ka’an, in order to consolidate the MayaKa’an brand as the eco-destination par excellence of the Mexican Caribbean” added the official.
This undertaking is part of a broader project called “Integration of Criteria for the Conservation of Biodiversity in the Tourism Sector of Mexico, with an Emphasis on Ecosystems Rich in Biodiversity-Kuxatur”, for the states of Quintana Roo, Baja California Sur, and Oaxaca.
The total resources for the three states are 7.2 million dollars that the GEF will contribute, distributed in equal parts of 1.4 million for each entity, and the rest for the administrative work of the project in the three states, with the objective of promoting tourism sustainability in Mexico, through the integration of criteria for the conservation of biodiversity in these three entities.
The Kuxatur project, whose word comes from the Mayan language and means “living tourism”, will be implemented in Quintana Roo by injecting resources into the ecotourism cooperatives that make up the MayaKa’an brand, in the Sian Ka’an reserve, municipalities of Tulum, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, and José María Morelos, from the center and south of Quintana Roo.
“Kuxatur is a unique project of its kind, and it comes at a key moment in which it will allow us to promote the tourism activity of the MayaKa’an tourism companies, which have been affected by the recent health contingency, as well as it contributes to the conservation of biodiversity. Making this destination a model of sustainability both in tourism practices and in the life of its communities, ”said Gonzalo Merediz Alonso, executive director of Amigos de Sian Ka’an and the president of the Council of Cuenca de la Peninsula de Yucatan.
“Cooperatives will be trained in sustainable development, in order to consolidate MayaKa’an as a biodiversity-friendly destination, through the design and implementation of innovative sustainable tourism policies and models,” he added.
Four lines of action
For his part, Darío Flota Ocampo, general director of the Quintana Roo Tourism Promotion Council (CPTQ), highlighted that this project, coming from the United Nations, will give MayaKa’an greater relevance; and thanks to the promotional work they have been doing since the CPTQ, dissemination efforts will be strengthened to promote the natural and cultural attractions that this destination offers to its visitors.
The project, he said, will be focused on four lines of action: reinforcing the institutional, regulatory and normative framework in order to promote sustainable tourism development in MayaKa’an; make efficient use of biodiversity in the tourism value chain; integrate biodiversity in the development and operation of tourism and manage knowledge, monitoring and systematization of results.
Source: nitu.mx
