Helvetas to develop sustainable winter tourism in Kyrgyzstan

During a 2-day state visit of the Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov to Switzerland from 9-10 July, 2019, in Bern, the Government of the Swiss Confederation and the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic signed a Memorandum for Sustainable Winter Tourism Development in Kyrgyzstan heralding the launch of the Winter Tourism Kyrgyzstan (WTK) Project, competitively awarded to Helvetas Kyrgyzstan earlier this year by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

The WTK project is aimed to develop a sustainable and competitive winter tourism value chain in Kyrgyzstan. It is planned as a 10-year project with the first 2-year pilot phase focusing on two areas – Karakol and Bishkek South, currently the best-known for winter tourism in Kyrgyzstan.

Building on Swiss experience in tourism and winter sports, WTK/Helvetas Kyrgyzstan will support and facilitate Kyrgyz partners in developing and selling higher-value-added services, implementing international standards for health and safety in winter tourism, creating a more conducive business environment, and launching many other initiatives for winter tourism development. Kyrgyz and Swiss partnerships and connectivity will be the core principles of the WTK work.

During the state visit, another Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation in Tourism was signed between the Kyrgyz Tourism Department under the KR Ministry of Culture, Information and Tourism and Swiss National Marketing Organization - Switzerland Tourism.