Madrid, May 2012

Held on the eve of Fitur, CIMET 2012 has once again become the link between business and Spanish and ministers responsible for tourism in Latin America. More than 200 professionals who attended the event have witnessed a debate between industry leaders and ministers.

The American Conference of Ministers of Tourism and Business, CIMET 2012, yesterday held its fifteenth year, counting one more year with the honorary presidency of His Majesty King Juan Carlos. The event, attended by over 200 professionals, at the opening ceremony was attended by Secretary of State for Tourism, Elizabeth Borrego, and the president of the CEOE, Joan Rosell, among other representatives of the Spanish business.

During the event, Borrego has highlighted the suitability of this Conference “to exchange views on tourism policy.” “CIMET us together one more year to talk about tourism, a sector that has best weathered the crisis and has already begun to grow,” he added. Rosell also wanted to move the audience a certain optimism, stressing that “tourist level 2011 has been a good year, with nearly 1,000 million tourists around the world.” Therefore, and although it is expected that 2012 “will not be so good,” President of the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE) believes that “tourism should help end the crisis.”

After the opening, which also helped the president of the Governing Board of Ifema, Jose Maria Alvarez del Manzano, the president of Globalia, Juan Jose Hidalgo, the CEO of Madrid Visitors and Convention Bureau, Pablo Bautista, and the president of the Madrid Business Confederation (CISM), Arturo Fernandez, open discussion took place between ministers and businessmen of Tourism. This new format has allowed business leaders Associations formulate the public and personal inquiries to participating ministers, who have had five minutes to summarize their plans in Tourism.

Gallego, invested Prócer Tourism

Following the debate, focusing on destination marketing in Latin American Spanish outbound market and plans and incentives for Spanish investment, we have proceeded to the chair of CEAVyT, Rafael Gallego, as Prócer Spanish Tourism in Latin America. Thus, it has received the Gold and Diamond Insignia as a representative of the many small and medium-sized travel agencies and tour operators from Spain with activity and presence in Latin American markets.

Visibly moved by recalling the support of his family, Gallego said that the award “demonstrates the Group’s commitment NEXO with travel agencies, and recognizing the work of small and medium enterprises.” CEAVyT President has taken the time to praise the work of travel agents, stressing that “it is useless if no hotels have players to fill” at the same time recalled the greater use of the ‘package’ of tourism, which in destinations like Canary and Balearic majority.

The closing ceremony was performed by the President of the Tourism Council of CEOE, Joan Gaspart, and Ifema CEO, Luis Eduardo Cortes. After thanking his invitation to the Organizing Committee co-chairs CIMET, Gaspart has asked the industry to “make an effort and look ahead with hope and illusion,” stressing that “much talk of crisis and problems do not add up” . Meanwhile, Cortes congratulated the organizers “for making a day of work on the world of tourism.”

Religious tourism in Panama represents an area to be exploited in the central provinces, for which the Castilla del Oro Foundation pretends to drive projects and works directed to highlight the monuments and festivities that marked the tradition of these areas.

They consist on pilgrimage dates and celebrations that attract thousands of people who come from different parts of the country to each of these areas, either because of their family origins or because of their religious convictions.

Because of this contribution, the Castilla del Oro Foundation has built in the city of Penonome the Paseo Andaluz, Amphitheater and Restaurant, as well as the Park of the San Antonio community, and the conditioning of the recreation area in San Antonio, structures that have boosted the tourism activity of this district.

The Foundation also made the design, logistic support and supply of shells and the image of Santiago Apostle for the church in the Nata Township, which was delivered by the international president of this organization, the Duke of Veragua, Cristobal Colon de Carvajal.

Near by this landmark, the Foundation, with the vision of engineer Richard Fifer Carles, also works in the renovation of the Alicia Theater for Convention Center, located at the Damian Carles street, township of Penonome.

In Veraguas, the Foundation will renovate the Placita San Juan de Dioos, in the Santiago township, as well as installing a lighting system in the Central Avenue, and the paving of the region’s Old Quarters.

In San Francisco de La Montana, the Castilla del Oro Foundation will build the town’s entrance arch and will renovate the San Francisco Church’s tower, while they are renovating the San Sebastian Inn in Ocu; and in Las Tablas, they are building the Casa de la Cultura “Climaco Batista Diaz”

We have to bet on tourism that offers a unique product, instead of a mass one stated Ruiz Pena

The director of the Public Enterprises of the Autonomous Region of Extremadura in Spain, Jaime Ruiz Pena, during his visit to Panama, stated that they have to bet on a tourism that is not massive but that offers a unique product, like Fort San Lorenzo, which could become the tourism engine of the Colonial Colon.

During his visit to this place, invited by the Castilla del Oro Foundation in Panama, a project led by entrepreneur Richard Fifer Carles, Ruiz Pena said that the Fort’s structure makes it suitable for fitting rooms, and also offers the possibility of creating a line of products and souvenirs with the San Lorenzo stamp for the visitors.

With the purpose of fulfilling this commitment, the Petaquilla Gold, S.A. company, led by mining impresario Richard Fifer-Carles furnished three nurseries, the first in the Villa Del Carmen community, a gathering center for ornamental plants, with capacity for 60 thousand scions; La Ceiba,  where about 30 thousand forestal and revegetation seeds are produced and cultivated and the Molejón nursery, where 30 thousand species are produced.

Under engineer Richard Fifer Carles’s leadership, Petaquilla Gold, S. A. will deliver 55,650 ounces of gold to the bank for a period of five years and will receive an additional cash payment if the price of gold exceeds $875 per ounce to a maximum of $1,290.

Currently the price of an ounce of gold is trading above $1,828 dollars, according to Preciooro.com.

Redwood quotes declaration of the president and executive of Petaquilla, Gold, S.A., Joao Manuel, who said that “to reach the commercial production in our gold mine of Molejon is a historical milestone for the company, as well as for the mining Industry in Panama”.

“Our project is making a significant contributions in the sustainable economic development for the region, providing jobs for the local people and a support for local commercial establishments, in complete respect to the highest environmental standards”, said Manuel.

The job of the municipal governments in La Castilla del Oro, is a contribution that La Castilla del Oro Foundation needs, to accomplish the sustainable development of the region based on Spiritual Tourism. Thus remarked Richard Fifer – Carles driving force of the Foundation and Pascual Montañés Duato the Foundation President in Panamá, “we will develop Second Generation Social Responsibility; sponsoring the sustainable development of the region with independence from the mining project”.

SENSITIZE TOURISM INSTITUTIONS

Working alongside the municipal authorities with the end goal of sensitizing the governmental touristic institutions about the enormous potential in this region, and thus obtain the financial backing to carry out endowments necessary for its development.

Restore parks and plazas in the different municipalities, create pedestrian zones where activities can be developed, adequately signal the regions that constitute La Castilla del Oro, restore museums or  create new ones are some of the challenges outlined for short and medium terms.

“This August, for the first time, we planted the seed of a new culture, a working professional activity  of great dignity which is to extract those resources that our homeland has shared and that providence has agreed to share with us all,” Fifer Carles said.