VAU DEJES AS TOURISM DESTINATION
Duration: 30 months, October 2022-March 2025
This Project is supported by the EU funding through the EuropeAid Programme and implemented by the Consortium consisting of Municipality of Vau Dejës, as lead Applicant and Qendra për Promovimin e Konkurrueshmërisë (Centre for Competitiveness Promotion-CCP) as co-applicant.
The project goal is the development of VAU DEJES region to become an attractive community–based tourism destination through the development of the tourist information infrastructure, capacity building and promotion as an integrated and sustainable model for increasing the number of tourists visiting the area, employment, new businesses and contributing to a better quality of life for local people.
The main target groups of the project include:
Group 1 – targets young people and women, especially heads of households, with less access to employment, including people with disabilities.
- The category of young women is planned to participate in training to improve skills for production handicrafts, loom products, folks’ costumes and tourism souvenirs. In total 70 women (40+30) will participate to increase their technical capacities and ability to manage their products for the tourism market and beyond.
- Another category is young women and men unemployed, with fewer capacities enabling them to find a job or with fewer opportunities provided for them in the market. Therefore, providing them with short training courses to prepare with skills needed in the hospitality services is an option. Around 40-45 persons are planned to participate in this training.
- 30 persons that serve in hospitality should be trained. will be trained in kitchen, restaurant, housekeeping and hotel management.
- 5-7 cultural guides for cultural and, etc. An analysis with the tourism staff in Municipality concluded
- 8 persons will be trained for kayaking, stand-up paddle and rafting to serve as water sports guide,
- 30 pupils will be trained for hiking.
- 40 persons will continue to be part of the entrepreneurship programme, orientating them toward self-employment or starting a social business.
- 3-5 initiatives/social businesses will be supported by sub-grants, including thosemanaged by women
Group 2 – the staff of the Municipality with a direct connection to the relevant issues of the project.
The project will increase the capacities of Municipality staff to design the Tourism Action Plan for the municipality. Activities/training to fill the gaps in expertise is foreseen for 10-15 persons.
The expected results of the project are:
Result 1: Improved tourist information, tourism signage and tourism promotion
Result 2: Capacity building on tourism profiles, hospitality, crafts, souvenirs and entrepreneurship developed
Result 3: Improved skills of Municipality staff on planning, drafting and management of developing programmes and projects for tourism and organization of public awareness
The project is expected to achieve a high impact in the region in three directions:
- Improvement of Vau Dejës image as a tourism destination and economic growth by increasing the number of tourists visiting the area, by 15-20 % after the second year of project implementation;
- Increasing the employment/self-employment in tourism and hospitality services, cultural activities and other support activities to orientate the youth to the legal economic activities;
- Planning and coordination of programming practices, a Tourism Development Plan and community-based tourism concepts are embedded within the Municipality and have ownership in the region.