The Visegrad Group countries have signed a tourism cooperation protocol agreement.
The protocol – signed in Northern Slovakia on Wednesday - aims to boost the effectiveness of the tourism marketing strategies of the four countries both via joint projects and by taking advantage of their individual opportunities and experiences.
Zoltán Kovács, the state secretary for international communications and relations, highlighted the growing importance of Visegrad Four cooperation. He said that when it comes to tourism, Hungary is trying to set a good example, pointing out that over the past eight years, the number of tourists visiting Hungary has risen by 50 percent.
The spokesman said tourism accounts for 10.7 percent of Hungary’s GDP, adding that the government’s goal is to increase that share to 16 percent by 2030.
In recent years, the government has spent some 800 billion HUF (2.5bn EUR) on the sector, with some 1,000 tourism projects set to be carried out again this year, the state secretary said.
The signing of the agreement was part of a two-day meeting of the V4 countries in Strbske Pleso (Csorbató). The meeting focused on the situation of the tourism industry in the four countries, its sustainability as well as opportunities for cooperation in the sector.