Daghestan Tourism Committee discuss preparations for international tourist forum "Open Daghestan-2014"

Makhachkala, June 10, 2014. Today, Daghestan Tourism Committee met to discuss preparations for the international tourist forum «Open Daghestan-2014" scheduled for September 24-25. The meeting was attended by Committee’s Deputy Chairman Muslimat Halimbekova, Deputy Director of the "Daghestan" reserve Zaripat Magomedova, chief specialist of the Tourism Department of Derbent administration Said Abdulaev, officials from the Tourist Business Centre, and some stagers of tourism.

Opening the meeting, Muslimat Halimbekova stressed that the forum was part of the Daghestan development priority project "Brand new Daghestan". She said that the forum’s main objectives were to demonstrate cultural and historical potential of Daghestan and other Russian regions, to promote new projects of effective positioning, promoting the tourism product, and developing hospitality infrastructure, to help professionals and experts discuss problems of tourism development prospects, and to provide Daghestan, Russian and international tourist businesses with platforms to promote their products and services.

Halimbekova added that the forum features an exhibition of tourist products, goods and services in thematic areas like "Active tourism", "Children & Family", "Religious tourism and pilgrimage", "Ethnocultural tourism" and others. "The forum’s business program implies a panel discussion called "Development strategy for tourism and recreation". Also, the forum will host a fishing tourism festival named "Fishing on Agrahane" as well as a presentation of Daghestan investment projects for creating and reconstructing tourist and recreational clusters. There will also be the first republican contest in event tourism. The contest program includes 3 competitions: the choice of the year, the capital of event tourism, and the event tourism leader," Muslimat Halimbekova said.

The forum will include a few plenary and breakout sessions and round tables held by Russian State University of Tourism and Service specialists from Moscow and foreign experts; participants will sign a number of agreements on cooperation and partnership in tourism. The visitors will be able to make free tours of Makhachkala and Derbent. The campaign will be an effective tool to promote services of companies engaged in sightseeing tours in Daghestan, and Daghestani will get a better idea of their home town and republic.