THE HOMELAND | MANIZALES
March 21 was the decisive date that the Institute of Culture and Tourism of Manizales (ICTM) became the Events and Tourism Promoter. At his head was Mónica Londoño Arango, social communicator and journalist with specialization in business management. He has been working in the tourism sector for 13 years, his last position was coordinating the Tourism Unit at the Corporation for the Development of Caldas. The headquarters of the entity continues to be in Expoferias.
LA PATRIA had the opportunity to talk with her to find out how she came to office and learn more about the mayor’s flagship project.Jorge Eduardo Rojas, for the sector: 52 events in 52 weeks.
How was your arrival at the Promoter?
The reality is that I am very happy, I have been in the sector for 13 years and I had always wanted tourism to have a greater investment in Manizales and that in addition to that it had a department that could serve it in its entirety.. Before the ICTM played a role, but it had to divide it with culture, so it is a great achievement that this year there is already a Secretariat of Culture and that additionally the Events and Tourism Promoter collects those missionary actions for tourism development.
How is the planning of projects that will be managed by the Promoter being developed?
The Promoter was left with an important missionary process and that is to strengthen the tourism sector from three lines. 1. Competitiveness: it is training for work or improving business indicators and how we make that economic sector stronger. 2. The administration of tourist scenarios: that is where we have the Network of Ecoparks, Expoferias, the Los Fundadores Theater and the idea is that we add a series of tourist spaces that really serve as a product so that there is a good offer, but also as some spaces to produce events. 3. Promotion and plan 52: these are the stored projects that are combined with the city promotion plan. Let’s say that the greatest focus in this Administration currently is to design and execute a different, truly disruptive plan that meets the needs and trends. that we have and that can bring us visitors.
What is project 52?
Project 52 in tourism is basically the meetings industry. We want to strengthen Manizales as a tourist destination to hold city events that will continue to contribute to culture, but we will also have meetings industry events, which can be public shows, congresses, conventions, workshops, sports centers, experienceswhich basically make people from another city mobilize based on that event.
Regarding the budget of project 52, are you going to support it with what you have at hand or how does it work?
Yes, surely we are assigned a budget that the mayor has already talked about, there are going to be city events (which surely are not going to bring us visitors)which have an internal audience, but are something so loud that they become a tourist product for the city and a good promotion process so that people arrive. There will also be what one calls event capture and that is to map events that are nationwide in a traveling format and present applications with allies such as the different public and private institutions in the city.
Does project 52 cover all the programs carried out in the city?
We wouldn’t have the capacity for that. We are receiving a lot of people who bring us projects and that is why it is important to differentiate what generates economic benefits and what generates overnight stays. Those are the ones that will surely be coupled with greater force to plan 52, but the city projects will continue to be accompanied by the Ministry of Culture, because they contribute to the cultural and artistic sector. That is a missionary process, we will be here to guide and guide you, but it is very important to keep that in mind, because there is no pocket that can hold it, the Municipality does not have all those resources and in any case, when you have to hold an event private, we must seek the self-sustainability of the State.
When do the events start?
We are not going to do 52 events. Project 52 is not that the Promoter does 52 events, is that it generates the conditions so that during the 52 weeks of the year there can be 52 events that generate an important economic benefit and hotel occupancy, because otherwise we would lose our missionary process, which is tourism competitiveness and the promotion of destinations. When we say 52 events, we are going to ensure that those that already exist in the city can have our support from some of these other commercial perspectives.
How is the Promoter planning to ensure that locals and visitors visit the Ecoparks again?
That is also a promotional issue for the city. In the execution process there are two things, the first is that there is a large investment by the Municipality in infrastructure issues in the Ecopark Network. To begin with, we are going to operate the infrastructure because we know that many of them need improvement and, second, promotion, because the reality is that people do not recognize ecoparks as a tourist attraction.
What action plan do you have in mind to draw attention to large events so that they come to the city?
The simplest call to action is that we will make things easier for companies and institutions that want to come to hold an event, and it is not easy to provide money, it is to support their management. Additionally, it must be kept in mind that the city already has an office called Visit Manizales, which is the city’s events and conventions office, dedicated to promoting the city as a point of events. It is that we can offer them conditions in terms of logistics, permits, security and if we have to have resources, what are the spaces I have, what can I give them at a discount, what are the conditions that I can make so that they feel that Manizales is going to help them. generate enough comfort to be able to hold your event.
Budget
The mayor of Manizales, Jorge Eduardo Rojas, announced in March that the budget of this decentralized entity is $13 billion and that the debts of the ICTM, which are at least $2 billion, will become a liability of the Events and Tourism Promoter and the Mayor’s Office will be responsible for the balance in the red.
