SANTO DOMINGO- The Minister of Tourism, David Collado, and the Minister of Education, Ángel Hernández, signed an inter-institutional agreement to bring tourism to schools and strengthen the subject in high schools and polytechnics where it is taught.
The purpose of the agreement is to join efforts for the promotion, learning and creation of a civic culture of support for tourism in students of the different levels and modalities of the pre-university education system at the national level, especially in the main tourist destinations of the country.
To broaden the scope of the alliance, both institutions signed additional protocols establishing a work plan, an annual budget, and the human resources involved, among other points.
Minister Collado highlighted the importance of this agreement, as it guarantees the Dominican Republic will become a powerful tourism force in the Caribbean.
“We have realized that if we want to be a tourist powerhouse, as we already are in the Caribbean, we must instill in our children and teenagers the importance of tourism in the Dominican Republic,” Collado said.
He understands that the issue of tourism should be strengthened in the schools, high schools and polytechnics that the Ministry of Education has throughout the country.
The Minister of Education said he is very pleased with the signing of the agreement, taking into consideration what the tourism sector generates and its impact on the economy.
“Tourism is not just an activity where people come to have fun and see the beach, it is also a cultural and historical activity, it is a contribution to development,” said Minister Hernández.
Commitments
Through this agreement, the Ministry of Education (MINERD) commits to carrying out the necessary procedures to integrate Tourism as an optional field in high school; to promote and incorporate into the Dominican pre-university education system the teaching of the skills required to develop ventures, formulate proposals and provide services in the tourism sector; to offer and facilitate training activities in this area and to implement training and continuous professional development programs for teachers in this field.
Likewise, MITUR commits to providing MINERD with the assistance of specialists in that sector and the required information, as well as the implementation of the agreed work plan and the design and updating of training; collaborate with the educational institution in the curriculum update of the Technical Professional modality.
Also, to conduct a survey to identify the training needs of the tourism sector, which will serve as input for the design of training programs and their inclusion in the educational system; to collaborate and serve as a channel to manage with the private sector the technical or economic contributions required for the development of the project in the productive sectors and subsectors of tourism; and to facilitate internships for students graduating from the Technical Professional educational program in its departments and collaborating institutions of MITUR.
