Event participants discussing tourism development within BSEC in Azerbaijan

The first meeting of Higher Education Institutions Specialised in Tourism Education within the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organisation (BSEC) is being held in Azerbaijan’s capital Baku.

The meeting is being held to discuss cooperation, prospects and problems of education in the field of tourism at the joint initiative of the Azerbaijan State Tourism Agency and the BSEC, Report informs.

The officials and representatives of universities from 11 member states of the organisation, including Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Russia, Albania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Serbia and Ukraine, as well as representatives of the UN World Tourism Organisation attended the meeting.

Chairman of the State Tourism Agency Fuad Naghiyev, who delivered a speech at the event, emphasised that the meeting within the BSEC is useful in terms of facilitating the exchange of knowledge and experience among universities in the field of tourism.

On the second day of the event, a round table discussion is planned to be dedicated to expanding partnership opportunities on education in the field of tourism among member states of the organisation.

The BSEC came into existence as a unique and promising model of multilateral political and economic initiative with the signing of the Istanbul Summit Declaration and the Bosphorus Statement by the Heads of State and Government of the countries in the region, on June 25, 1992.

With the entry into force of its Charter on May 1, 1999, BSEC acquired international legal identity and was transformed into a full-fledged regional economic organisation - the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation.

Aiming at fostering interaction and harmony among its members, as well as to ensure peace, stability and prosperity, encouraging friendly and good-neighborly relations in the Black Sea region, today BSEC serves as a forum for cooperation in a wide range of areas for its 13 Member States: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Türkiye and Ukraine.

Agriculture and agro-industry, banking and finance, combating organised crime, culture, customs matters, education, emergency assistance, energy, environmental protection, exchange of statistical data and economic information, healthcare and pharmaceutics, information and communication technologies, institutional renewal and good governance, science and technology, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), tourism, trade and economic development and transport are among the main fields of cooperation within the framework of the Organisation.