Advancing its strategic initiatives to boost Kerala’s travel and hospitality sector, Kerala Tourism is organizing an investors’ Meet in the city on November 16. The event will highlight significant investment opportunities in destinations, products, and initiatives, firmly establishing the state as an all-season experiential tourism hub.
The ‘Tourism Investors Meet’ (TIM), a large-scale inaugural initiative, will be inaugurated by Mr. Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, at Hyatt Regency in Thycaud at noon on November 16. The opening session, presided over by Mr. P A Mohamed Riyas, Minister for Tourism and PWD, will be attended by key figures such as the Planning Board Vice Chairman, Chief Secretary of Kerala, officials from various departments, and investors from India and abroad.
Mr. Riyas highlighted that the event will unveil thrust areas and locations requiring additional investments, presenting them to investors and stakeholders from India and abroad. He emphasized the immense untapped investment potential in Kerala’s tourism sector, expressing confidence that the investors’ Meet will make significant strides in this direction.
The event, hosting approximately 350 investors, aims to reveal abundant investment opportunities in Kerala’s tourism sector, encompassing hospitality, eco-tourism initiatives, adventure tourism, responsible tourism, and sustainable tourism projects. Presentations, exhibitions, seminars, workshops, project pitch sessions, roundtable discussions, and B2B meetings will showcase various tourism investment opportunities across the state.
Mr. Riyas emphasized the need for Kerala to update and upgrade its tourism sector to align with current trends, demands, and choices. He emphasized the importance of attracting more investments in promising locations and products to turn the entire state into a world-class, all-weather experiential tourism hub.
Highlighting the successful 25-year state-industry partnership, Mr. Riyas expressed the importance of leveraging new ideas, practices, and products through joint ventures, public-private partnership (PPP) models, and operational arrangements. He announced the establishment of a special facilitation center at the Tourism Directorate in the state capital to assist investors and propel their projects in the sector, leading to economic growth, job opportunities, and holistic changes in the tourism sector.
Mr. K Biju, Secretary of tourism, emphasized the event’s goal of increasing the tourism sector’s contribution to the state’s GDP from 10 percent to 12 percent, anticipating substantial investment outcomes. Despite global challenges, Mr. Nooh, Tourism Director, highlighted that over 1.88 crore visitors, including domestic and foreign tourists, visited Kerala in 2022.
The Tourism Investors Meet will serve as a platform for investors to explore diverse opportunities in Kerala, showcasing land parcels owned by the Tourism and other departments. Kerala Tourism Development Corporation Managing Director Ms. Sikha Surendran and KTIL Managing Director Dr. Manoj Kumar K were also present at the event, which promises to be a pivotal moment for Kerala’s tourism sector.
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