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Abbas Ganbay

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The International Exhibition Centre of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) in Urumqi hosted the opening ceremony of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Forum "Year of Tourism 2023," Azernews reports.

The event involves over 300 leaders of tourism organisations, representatives of international organisations, government and business entities, tourism experts, and diplomats from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Iran, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Qatar, Algeria, Morocco, and Uzbekistan.

The ceremony was preceded by the presentation of an exhibition showcasing the tourism potential of different countries and various projects in the development of the tourism sector to the guests.

Welcoming remarks to the forum participants were delivered by the Chairman of the XUAR Government of China, Erkin Tunyaz, the Secretary-General of the SCO, Zhang Min, and the Deputy Secretary-General of the SCO, Janesh Kain, who briefed on the achievements of the SCO in the field of tourism and the attractiveness of the tourism sector in XUAR and shared future plans.

Azerbaijan is represented at the forum by employees of the State Tourism Agency and the Embassy of Azerbaijan in China.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan, an active SCO dialogue partner, was one of the first countries to endorse China's "Belt and Road" program, greatly contributing to its execution with its economic and transportation logistics capacity.

Given the importance of tourism growth to the economy, it is worth noting that Azerbaijan's commercial turnover with SCO member countries climbed by 45.8 percent last year, surpassing $9 billion.

Last year, these countries accounted for 17 percent of Azerbaijan's foreign trade. SCO members have invested more than $12 bln in the economy of Azerbaijan.

The government put $3.2 bln into the economies of SCO members.

As a result, future tourist growth between Azerbaijan and the SCO will be a mutually beneficial partnership.

The SCO Forum "Year of Tourism 2023" is an initiative to promote tourism in the region and to encourage cooperation between the member countries. The forum aims to foster collaboration between the SCO member countries in the tourism industry, to share best practices, and to develop strategies for the development of the tourism sector.

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