Turkey Launches Free COVID-19 Certification System for Tourism Growth

The Turkish Minister of Tourism announced that the country is launching a COVID-19 certification system that will be internationally recognized and will be able to advertise areas free of coronavirus.

Thus, the Turkish authorities hope that such tourist places and real estate will be in high demand among international and local investors.

Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Minister of Culture and Tourism of Turkey, confirmed that their ministry works closely with other ministries and departments to develop the rules and basic principles of such a certification system. Ersoy noted that the ministry intends to issue certificates to players in the tourism industry in areas where there was no contact with the coronavirus and all hygiene and safety measures are in good order.

Tourism recovery in Turkey

Ersoy also said that the industry should be able to begin the recovery process in late May with destinations that are most attractive to domestic tourists, and then begin inbound tourism by the end of the month.

Ercan Jagchi, Chairman of the Association of Mediterranean Tourist Hoteliers, confirmed that the certification measures were well received by the tourism industry, which is glad to receive help and is ready to make every effort to normalize the situation in a crisis.

Certification is carried out in order to help hotels and other participants in the tourism industry to ensure standards, which are considered to be the most important element after opening for tourists.

Ulkay Atmaka, the head of the Turkish Association of Professional Hotel Managers, said the introduction of a certification system is planned for late May. Atmaka believes that the return of international tourists will be linked to the rapid return of domestic tourism. He noted that domestic travelers should start their vacations in May to show foreign tourists that Turkey is a safe vacation spot.

Coronavirus and tourism

Coronavirus has left millions of jobs in the global tourism sector in question. The World Travel and Tourism Council said last month that the pandemic is putting more than 50 million jobs in the industry at risk because it expects travel to fall by a quarter from last year, with Asia suffering the most. Tourism Economics, an international consulting company, said it was likely that international travel would fall by at least 10.5% this year, the biggest drop in history.

In March, Turkey announced the introduction of incentive measures to support enterprises and industries affected by the pandemic. This share cost the government 100 billion TL (14.7 billion US dollars). The measures will affect various companies and sectors, including tax avoidance and staff salary increase. As part of measures to support the tourism sector, a tourist tax for tourists will also be reduced until November 2020.