USAID Visit Tunisia is working with Regional Tourism Offices (CRTs) and municipalities to create innovative development plans that will tap into their regions’ unique tourism potential.
In May and early June, USAID Visit Tunisia conducted in depth research on four of our priority tourism destinations – Tataouine, Kairouan, Tabarka/Ain Drahim, and Tozeur – and began drafting Destination Development Plans (DDPs) for these regions. As part of this process, Visit Tunisia’s partner engagement specialists held some 40 meetings and site visits in these underserved areas, and collected data on each region’s tourism capacity, visitor numbers, visitor profiles, and main attractions/tourism itineraries. This information built on insight from DDP roundtables we held with public and private stakeholders earlier this year.
Tourism stakeholders in Jendouba participate in a DDP roundtable organized by USAID Visit Tunisia in February 2022.
Each of USAID Visit Tunisia’s priority tourism regions has tremendous tourism appeal. In the southern regions of Tataouine and Tozeur, visitors can find original Star Wars sites at the edge of the Sahara desert; in the central town of Kairouan, tourists can peruse an ancient, UNESCO-recognized medina with exquisite artisan handicrafts; and in the north-western town of Ain Drahim, nature-lovers can explore lush green forests that host a rich ecosystem of wild flora and fauna.
A Star Wars-themed hotel in Matmata, where scenes from the movie series were filmed.
USAID Visit Tunisia’s destination development planning support will help these regions capitalize on these diverse offerings by identifying strategic investment priorities, exploring public-private partnership opportunities, defining existing and new events to promote, strengthening linkages with tourism service providers, and improving development coordination and communication between local and central governments.
By mid-July, USAID Visit Tunisia will share the draft DDPs with local stakeholders, including CRTs, municipalities, and tourism federations and associations, for further input. After incorporating their feedback, the project will present the final DDPs at a roundtable in September.
This support will help the project reach its objectives of increasing overnight stays in underserved regions, increasing average tourism expenditure, and growing sustainable revenues and jobs for the sector.
