Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Speaking at the Haliç Congress Hall where the gala attended by the Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu expressed his honor at being host to such select guests.

Hisarcıklıoğlu said:

“I truly believe that you will remember İstanbul fondly and want to revisit it. During the morning meeting, I spoke about Turkey’s nature and history and now you will have the opportunity to sample one of the world’s oldest and varied cuisines of the world.”

- Rifai enchanted by the beauty of İstanbul

United Nations World Tourism Organization Secretary General Taleb Rifai, stating that he has been enchanted by the historical beauty of İstanbul, said, “I experienced a very special emotion in Haigia Sophia; how great a nation that they turned a mosque into a museum and showed their willingness for peace; they turned a prison into a hotel.”

Awarded for his contributions to tourism worldwide, Prof. Dr. Erik Cohen stated that he viewed tourism as a sociologist would, saying, “The authenticity of modern life is overlooked. Modern tourism is genuinely authentic. People are able to afford more than one house. People are always mobile and immigrate more. The need to return to the house you left from is diminished. Tourism is a part of everyday life for the western world. The importance of investment in tourism is beyond discussion.”

- Minister Günay gave out awards

Following the gala dinner, 13 projects from 10 countries were give awards for their creative solutions to various problems encountered in tourism in the categories of ‘Public Administration Policy Innovation,’ ‘Institutional Innovation,’ ‘Innovation in NGOs,’ and ‘Innovation in Research and Technology’.

The representatives from Belgium and Malaysia received their awards from the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Ertuğrul Günay while İstanbul Governor Avni Mutlu gave out the awards to the representatives from Spain and Kenya.

Attending the gala dinner in addition to Minister Günay and Governor Mutlu were Arab Tourism Organization President Bandar Bin Fad Al Fuhaid and many national and international guests from the tourism sector.
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