The Minister of Tourism, Lilja Dögg Alfreðsdóttir, reviews the future of tourism in the Hæfnisetur's recent annual report. She says that good staff is a key factor in the tourist experience and that staffing, skills and professionalism must be put in the forefront in order for the resistance to be as effective as possible.
"Tourism is a branch of knowledge based on staff, their skills and knowledge. To ensure that tourists continue to receive excellent service and that their experience is enjoyable and unique, staffing, competence and professionalism must be put in the forefront. One consequence of the pandemic in the tourism industry is that experienced staff have disappeared from the industry, thus losing important knowledge and experience. That is why it is even more important than before to build and increase knowledge and skills in order for the resistance to be as effective as possible. "
One of the Hæfnisetur's projects from 2018 has been the development of a comprehensive study line in tourism. The development of the study program has been successful and curricula have now been submitted to the Directorate of Education for certification. The structure and content of the curriculum has been presented to upper secondary schools and lifelong learning centers, the response is positive but it is unclear whether and where the study will be offered. It will be one of the tasks of the Fitness Center next year to follow suit.
The annual report provides a good overview of the Fitness Center's projects and the results of the work. The main projects of the year were:
- Future education - services and consulting with companies
- Development of digital tools for education
- Development of a comprehensive study line in tourism
- Formation of a collaboration between the Tourism Competence Center and the destination agency
An innovation in this year's annual report is that it is only published electronically.
Click on an image to access the annual report of the Tourism Competence Center.
