Minister Niels Olsen: In the first half of January the nomadic visa will be launched

For Niels Olsen, Minister of Tourism, who took office since May 2021, it is important to precisely plan the projects that the country needs in terms of tourism. In fact, the actions carried out by the State portfolio are in line with increasing the influx of visitors to the country until 2025. Olsen tells EL UNIVERSO the achievements made during 2021 and the immediate actions that will take place in the first months of 2022.

What are the milestones with which 2021 closes?

It was possible to vaccinate all tourist personnel and this represents one of the greatest achievements. In labor matters, at the beginning of this year 41,000 people were employed in the accommodation, food and beverages sector; As of December, there are already 600,000 employees nationwide, which shows a reactivation.

The arrival of visitors is still far from the 2019 figures, but there is recovery. 2021 closes with 600,000 tourists, there is a long way to go. In addition, in May 2021, the tourism sector was ranked number 9 as an industry contributing to gross domestic product (GDP), as of December it was ranked number 5, above the cocoa sector.

In this year, was it possible to work hand in hand with the private sector?

Yes, and the most recurring request from the private sector was financial respite. In that sense, in the Economic Development Law there are several articles such as deducting the losses of 2020 and 2021 from the income tax for ten years, restructuring the debts with the Internal Revenue Service and the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute for 48 months no down payment. Other elements are the elimination of the 12% charge to foreigners to improve competitiveness in hotels and the definition of twelve days a year to lower VAT by four points.

SRI issued a resolution to apply remission of interest, fines and surcharges for the tourism sector

What additional measures are being analyzed to continue on the reactivation path in 2022?

In the first half of January, the nomadic visa will be officially launched, which seeks to attract remote workers to the country. In the United States there are an estimated 9 million remote workers, if at least 1% can be brought to Ecuador and they have an average monthly expense of $ 2,000; about $ 180 million per month would be injected.

Another action, which will also take place in the first fortnight, is the country brand. Ecuador as a destination will be participating aggressively in international fairs together with the private sector hand in hand to strengthen its commercial ties with the tourism industry of the United States, Great Britain, Germany, France and Switzerland.

Other actions?

Improving the country’s air connectivity is important. An open skies agreement was recently signed with four countries (United States, Chile, Dominican Republic, Kuwait). This measure will eliminate the ceiling on the allocation of frequencies, for example, between Ecuador and the United States, which will allow more airlines to enter to compete and fly in the country.

Signing with four countries for open skies will cause the arrival of more airlines and the reactivation of the tourism sector in Ecuador

In addition, it should be noted that this year, which is still a pandemic, 60% of national frequencies and 40% of international frequencies have been recovered.

What type of tourism is targeting with the policy promoted by the Government?

The vision and philosophy of the Ministry is to use tourism as a vehicle for conservation and development. We are focused on quality, but not quantity.

We are interested in attracting high-value tourists, that is, those who inject a considerable amount of money into the economy for an extended period of time, who may even be backpackers, and who often do tourism in rural areas. And, on the other hand, attract the tourist who spends a lot of money in a short time, who is a luxury visitor. It is a tourism of niches, basically.

In that sense, how do you work to offer security for tourists?

We have activated the tourist police, more than 300 agents, in four destinations in the country: Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca and Montañita.

How was the recovery of funds for promotion (Ecodelta and Ecuador Tourist Power)?

It is an issue that we are including in the Organic Law of Tourism to find the legal way to recover those funds. Until that, we have a budget of $ 40 million for 2022 to 2025 that has been prioritized and approved by the Government. The amount is exclusively to invest in promotion, development and to reach the goal of two million tourists by 2025.

With regard to the train, what would be expected for 2022?

The process of reactivation and the search for a strategic ally is still underway, in December the productive assets of the company in liquidation are transferred Railways to the Ministry of Transportation and Public Works. (I)