New Delhi: The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, in association with the North Eastern States and West Bengal is organising the“International Tourism Mart” in Imphal, Manipur from 23rd – 25thNovember, 2016. The event will be held in the City Convention Centre, Sanjenthong, Imphal, Manipur and will be inaugurated on 24th November, 2016 by Shri Okram Ibobi Singh, the Chief Minister of Manipur in the presence of Union Tourism Secretary Shri Vinod Zutshi and other dignitaries from North Eastern States.
This is the 5th International Tourism Mart and an annual event organised in the North Eastern region with the objective ofhighlighting the tourism potential of the region in the domestic and international markets. It brings together the tourism business fraternity and entrepreneurs from the eight North Eastern States and West Bengal. The event has been planned and scheduled to facilitate interaction between buyers, sellers, media, Government agencies and other stakeholders.
The North East Region of India comprising the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim, is endowed with diverse tourist attractions and products. The varied topography of the region, its flora and fauna, the ethnic communities with their rich heritage of ancient traditions and lifestyles, its festivals, arts and crafts, make it a holiday destination waiting to be explored.
Buyer and Media delegates from around the world and from different regions of the country are participating in the Mart and will engage in one-to-one meetings with sellers from the North East Region. This will enable the tourism product suppliers from the region to reach out to international and domestic buyers, with the objective of promoting tourism to the region. 57 Buyer delegates from ASEAN, Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Russia, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Netherlands, Kenya, Oman, Canada, Brazil , South Africa, Sri Lanka , Bangladesh , United Kingdom and USA are participating in the Mart.
Besides the foreign delegates, 80 domestic stakeholders in Tourism sector from other parts of the country including sellers from the North Eastern States and West Bengal are participating in the Mart. Representatives of State Tourism Departments of these State Tourism Departments are also present to showcase their tourism destinations and to interact with the delegates.
International buyers and media delegates from countries around the world and from different regions of the country are participating in the Mart. They will be engaging in business-to-business meetings with sellers from the North Eastern Region. In addition to these the three-day event also includes presentations by state governments on their tourism potential, cultural evenings, sightseeing visits to local attractions in and around Imphal and press meetings with the media in the presence of Shri Vinod Zutshi, Secretary (Tourism), Government of India.
An exhibition by State Tourism Departments from the North Eastern States and West Bengal is also being organised to show case the tourism products of respective participating States.
Post-mart familiarisations to the states in the region have been arranged for the delegates from overseas as well as domestic buyers to create awareness about the rich and varied tourism products of the North Eastern region and to give them a first-hand experience of the destination.
The International Tourism Marts are organised in the North Eastern States on rotation basis. The earlier editions of this mart have been held in Guwahati, Tawang, Shillong and Gangtok. The highlight of this 5th International Tourism Mart 2016 is that it is being organised during the Sangai Festival. The Sangai festival is an annual major cultural festival organised by State Government of Manipur every year from November 21 to 30.
Enhanced number of 35 countries covered for the 5th International Tourism Mart as against the previous marts has been consciously considered by Government of India.
A special website of the event has been created with all information about the event which can be accessed from www.itmnortheastindia.in.
