North West: Tourism Actors trained

Regions
Choves LOH | 20-03-2018 04:07

Bamenda (Mezam) - reception, hygiene and  safety  of  tourists was topical during a workshop that assembled actors from the West and North West regions in Bamenda on February 22-33, 2018.

The inspiration is an effort to enhance standards in the Tourism and Leisure sub sectors ahead of the 2019 Africa Cup of nations in Cameroon. Tourism is indeed; a very important industry and a powerful instrument for growth and national integration.

It is against this backdrop that the Bamenda workshop featured presentations on reception and the attitude of Tour Guides, reception techniques and front office management, consumer service, conception and sale of a Tour circuit, hospitality, hygiene, methods of food conservation and preventive measures against food poisoning.

The workshop also featured presentations on food contamination and effects on catering and establishments, techniques of marketing tourism establishments, room service and staff attitude towards customers, security of tourism etc. It was a rare moment for actors to take home lessons on good practices.

The importance of the workshop was stressed when the Technical  Adviser  in the Ministry of Tourism and Leisure,   Black Garka Blaise told participants that after the African Cup of Nations, tourists will only return to Cameroon if the quality of services rendered was not only satisfactory but meets international standards.

The way forward according to the Technical Adviser was the training of actors because there cannot be quality without qualified personnel and there is no qualified personnel without proper training.

It is all  about efforts to end amateurism in the sector as he revealed that partner administrations and the private sector are working together to harmonize the implementation of training  programmes  in tourism, hospitality,  management and leisure.