Haiti Tourism Ministry presented the first touristic development project in the Cotes de Fer area which could get finished by 2015 and sees the construction of an airport with a 2,400 meter airstrip, a mall, 18-holes golf field, and 1,000 hotel rooms with an estimated investment of USD 230 million.
This project shines among related works with the study of strategies in the field of the Program of Development of Regions Integrated of Development of Tourism (RIAT).
After the diagnose stage of the RIAT program, developed by the SODADE Group, Mexican consultants headed by Felipe Ortiz (specialist in the development of touristic destinations) carried out this program bringing a touristic development plan for the south coast of the country.
Stephanie Balmir Villedrouin, minister of Tourism, is glad for having started these eleven months of study of the south and southeast coast of Haiti. In this sense she announced the creation of a “PLANITOUR” structure, which will be responsible for programming primary development tourism areas for Haiti.
“We can’t talk about tourism without management plans; we can’t talk about tourism without working on the zone’s touristic product. I’m very satisfied with this collaboration with Mexican experts that allow us to have this integral touristic development plan today”.
Andy Durosier, Director of the Studies and Programming Unit (EPU) from the Tourism Secretariat informed about many factors they’ve taken into account in the plan.
“This study on the south and southeast considers soil’s biodiversity, economy, the same as demography and social aspects of each one of these regions”, pointing that “the actual development of tourism is shaped solely around these pillars”.