Manuel Alejandro Cardenete, Deputy Minister at the Regional Ministry of Tourism in Andalucia and Coordinator for Natural Resources and Tourism at the Renew Europe Group in the European Committee of the Regions (Renew Europe CoR) was elected President of NECSTouR during the annual general meeting on 22 September. NECSTouR is the voice of European regions committed to economic, social and environmental sustainability through tourism – an increasingly important driver of destination competitiveness.

As the new President, Cardenete will strategically guide the work of the network, which consists of 39 official tourism organisations across Europe, over the next three years. Cardenete works on the future of tourism, promoting sustainable tourism for instance as rapporteur for the European Committee of the Region. Striving to restore Europe’s leading position in tourism while at the same time making EU tourism more sustainable is also one of the priorities of Renew Europe CoR.

Incoming President Cardenete said:

“As tourism restarts, the European Regions have a clear vision on our common mission to accelerate digitalisation and sustainability in our destinations making them good places to live, work and visit. I stand ready to cooperate with the European Institutions to build the Agenda of the European Tourism of Tomorrow. It is at the regional and local level that the transition is being shaped and where one finds the inspiring good practices and energy necessary to build the partnerships that drive better recovery. We are committed to play our role both as the voice of Regions in Europe and as drivers of change back in our destinations.”

Renew Europe CoR President François Decoster said:

“I congratulate Manuel Alejandro for his election to this important position. One half of public investment in the EU is carried out at subnational level, and a significant part of that is in the tourist industry. As a group, we are committed to a recovery post-COVID that is green, smart and inclusive, and one which allows citizens to experience all of our European tourist destinations sustainably.”

Cardenete will continue as member of the CoR and as Renew Europe Coordinator in the CoR’s NAT Commission.

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Photo: Renew Europe CoR