It was more than the launch of a magazine, much more than a get-together, it was almost a «mini Algarve congress». The presentation of the second issue of the magazine of the series “Promontoria Monográfica – History of the Algarve”, entitled “Fragments for the History of Tourism in the Algarve”, Saturday afternoon, at the Museu de Portimão, with a full house, turned out to be a reflection on the that tourism was, is and will be, in the main tourist region of the country.
This magazine, which publishes 15 articles by 19 authors, crosses «the history of our Algarve and what tourism represented in the past, represents in the present and will represent in the future», as summarized Alexandra Rodrigues Gonçalves, one of the coordinators of the publication and author of one of the texts.
Pedro Ferré, vice-rector of the University of Algarve, who was responsible for presenting the publication, during yet another gathering, the first this year, promoted by the Grupo dos Amigos do Museu de Portimão, shared reflections on the topics covered.
«The history of tourism in the Algarve revolves around the 1915 Algarve Regional Congress and the inauguration of the Airport of Faro, in 1965», events of which, last year, dates were commemorated Round, the centenary and the 50 years.
After referring to the evolution of tourism, since the times when travelers went to “freshen up in Monchique and bathe in Praia da Rocha”, the vice-rector of UAlg highlighted the “monoculture of Tourism and the devastating role for the region ». «Tourism has dried up other areas, which, contrary to what could have happened, were not enhanced, but razed to the ground», he concluded.
Vítor Neto, president of NERA, Business Association of the Algarve Region, and one of the authors, considered that this issue of the magazine “Promontoria Monográfica” «is the second Algarve Regional Congress», being almost «the critical balance of these 100 years of tourism».
Speaking about the tourist activity in the region, Vítor Neto began by pointing out that, «when we say that the Algarve is sun and sea, we are already sharing part of our strength». Because, he stressed, “there is no such thing as a cultural tourist, a golf tourist, a sun and beach tourist. There are tourists, each one of them different, who, among other things, will also visit the museum, the archaeological site, but they do it in different ways. The mono-product tourist does not exist, it is a statistical abstraction».
Vítor Neto recalled that Tourism, worldwide, is the 4th largest exporter, but in Portugal it is the 1st exporter, having represented, last year, 15% of exports of goods and services. Therefore, he said, «we don't have too much tourism in Portugal and the Algarve! We have is other sectors less».
Always attentive to what is happening in Tourism and putting his finger on the wounds, Vítor Neto highlighted what has changed worldwide, drawing attention to phenomena that, in Portugal, have received little attention.
«Airlines low cost shook the big operators, who were the owners of tourism", "new technologies have changed the root of the functioning of tourism, the tourist with his smartphone does everything without intermediation", "the shared economy, like Uber, Airbnb, is changing the nature of transport and accommodation". Now, he insisted on stressing Vítor Neto, “this is not being well monitored in Portugal”.
Desidério Silva, president of the Algarve Tourism Region, took the opportunity to draw attention to some problems that the region continues to face, with mobility in the first place. «Yesterday [Friday] I sent the Secretary of State for Tourism a photo with the queues of Spaniards on the Guadiana bridge, to pay the tolls on Via do Infante. Because this week, we went to Seville to do an action to promote the Algarve, some of those people were probably there, but then they have a kilometer and a half and hours to cross the Guadiana bridge… What image do they have? The Secretary of State replied sympathetically that she is already dealing with this with her colleague from Transport…”
Taking the idea that the magazine and the gathering had been a «mini Algarve congress», as José Gameiro, scientific director of the Portimão Museum, summarized, the president of NERA Vítor Neto left three demands and a challenge.
“We have to fight for the political recognition of the importance of tourism in the economy”, since it is not enough just to “talk about the subject when the tourist year is very good”; “we need a national tourism strategy that says that the Algarve is different from Lisbon, that Lisbon is different from Madeira”; “There has to be regional capacity to manage tourism. Tourism regions have been emptied in recent years, they have less autonomy than ten years ago». These were the claims.
The challenge: «we lack a new Algarve Regional Congress». But one that, as Margarida Tengarrinha pointed out during the get-together, brings together people from all political persuasions, as it happened 100 years ago, in which republicans and monarchists forgot their rivalries to discuss and think about the Algarve.
And if, in 2015, this new Algarve Regional Congress failed to materialize, it seems that this year will be different. The president of RTA guaranteed that «this year we have conditions to reactivate it», while the vice-rector of UAlg expressed the interest of the academy in the project.
The promise was made, in front of the hundred people who attended the launch of the magazine edited by the University of Algarve. And in front of the readers of the Sul Informação.
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