Turkey Should Aid Tourism Sector Amid COVID: Opposition

Turkey's main opposition leader on Tuesday called on the government to give monetary aid to the country's tourism sector, amid the worldwide fall in travel due to COVID-19.

Speaking to his Republican People's Party's (CHP) parliamentary group, Kemal Kilicdaroglu called on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to meet with representatives of the sector.

Last year and this year, France, Spain, Italy and Greece gave large grants to the tourism sector said Kilicdaroglu.

"Turkey gave nothing. However, the tourism sector is important for Turkey. Every tourist coming gives support to agriculture, industry, employment, and (reducing) the current account deficit," he said.

Kilicdaroglu said that Turkey earns huge sums from the tourism sector "without making a huge effort."

But due to the pandemic, tourists are not coming to Turkey, he added.

"Why should tourists come to a region where such an intense virus is circulating? But tourism is very important for us," he said.

Amid a new global wave of the virus, Turkey recently introduced stepped-up night and weekend curfews.

To aid the tourism industry and ensure the safety of both the local public and visitors, the government on Tuesday introduced plans to vaccinate all tourism workers against the virus by the end of May.

In addition, Turkey pioneered a Safe Tourism Certification program to confirm strict health and hygiene requirements at airlines, airports, and other transport facilities, as well as at accommodation outlets and food and beverage venues.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed over 3 million lives in 192 countries and regions, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University. Over 141.5 million cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries now nearing 81 million. -