Date: in 12 pts

European Commission actions on sustainable tourism

17 November, ŠILUTĖ, Lithuania

17 November 2016

Ilona Lelonek Husting,

Policy Officer, Unit ‘Tourism, Emerging and Creative Industries’, Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROWTH), European Commission

Facts & figures

• The 3rd largest economic activity in the EU (after Distributionand Construction)

• Dominated by SMEs (>90% = 3.4 million)

Socio-economic importance of tourism

• Direct, indirect and induced contribution:

EUR 1,6 trillion turnover

25 million jobs (10 % of the total labour force)

20% of the employees in the sector are aged below 25

• Spill-over effects: agro-food, transport, construction, retail,culture, design, etc.

Europe - Nr 1 destination of the world - 581 million international tourist arrivals

Thanks to great:

•cultural and historical heritage

•natural assets

•diversity of sceneries

•quality services

•good connectivity

3

INSERT

Administrative obstacles to businesses,

lack of awareness of

funding opportunities

Increased competition

from destinations in

emerging countries

Low ICT uptake,

keeping up with digitalisation

Quality of jobs in tourism,

appropriate skills

development

Challenges for European tourism

Improve

business

environment

and facilitate

access to

finance

4 PRIORITY ACTIONS 2016 ONWARDS

Uptake of

Digitalisation

(+ collaborative

economy)

Enhance skills and

training & workforce

mobility

Promotion of

destination Europe

and

internationalisation

of SMEs

4

Legal Framework – EU Tourism competences

• EU competence (after the Lisbon Treaty art. 195):Complement, support and coordinate the action of the

Member States in the tourism sectorHow? By:

• Encouraging the creation of a favorable environmentfor the development of undertakings in this sector

• Promoting cooperation between the Member States, particularly by the exchange of good practice

• No harmonization ofthe laws and regulations of the Member States

European Destinations of Excellence "EDEN" (1)Objectives:

Enhancing visibility of the emerging, non-traditional European tourist destinations of excellence

Rewarding sustainable forms of tourism

promoting networking between awarded destinations to persuade other destinations to adopt sustainable tourism development modes

This European quest for excellence in tourism is developed around an annual theme (leitmotif), chosen by the Commission together with the relevant national tourism bodies.

2007 – rural tourism 2008 – local intangible heritage

2009 – protected areas 2010 – aquatic tourism

2011 – tourism and regeneration of physical sites

2013 – accessible tourism 2015 – Tourism & local gastronomy

2017- cultural tourism

http://ec.europa.eu/eden

European Destinations of Excellence "EDEN" (2)

> 140 destinations awarded in Europe so far and hundreds of runners-up of the contest

In Lithuania: Plateliai, the Nemunas River Delta Regional Park, Zarasai region, Rokiskis Manor, Telsiai, Jesenika – Druskininkai.

> EDEN Network - a platform for the exchange of good practices at European level between awarded destinations but also with the aim to persuade other destinations to adopt sustainable tourism development practice.

Date: in 12 pts

European Destinations of Excellence "EDEN"(3)

The key feature of the selected destinations is their commitment to social, cultural and environmental sustainability.

The recipients of the award are emerging, little known European destinations

The process thus aims to help de-congest over-visited tourist destinations.

The initiative helps to spread the sustainable practices across the Union and to turn these little known but excellent places into all-year-round venues.

Main benefits for destinations and their local economies:

visibility, tourism flows, networking

Diversifying of EU tourism offerSupport to transnational thematic tourism

products

• Transnational projects – min 4countries involved, public-private partnerships withinvolvement of SMEs,developing tourism offeraround a common theme.

• 1. Sustainable transnationalthematic products

• linked to natural heritage andsustainable, environmentallyfriendly tourism.

• 2. Cultural or industrialheritage tourism routes

• 3. Accessible tourismitineraries

Support to sustainable and cultural transnational thematic tourism products (itinairaries, routes, trails…)

The Commission has directly supported through the calls for proposals the development and promotion of numerous transnational tourism products over the period 2011 – 2014 under different programes.

active

Religious

History

Gastronomy

Art/Heritage

Green

Wellness

Total investment : 8,4Mil€(EU co-financing 6,7Mil€)

Number of projects up to 2015: 37

organizations involved: 303

Examples of the co-financed projects:

- EuroVelo- Iron Curtain Trail (EV 13)- St James Way (EV 3)- Hiking trail along Danube- Greenways- Via Francigena and the

Pilgrimage Ways- CERA-DEST European Route of

Ceramics- Venetian Routes - European Equestrian routes- LIMES (the frontiers of the

Roman Empire) http://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/tourism/offer/sustainable/transnational-products/index_en.htm

Some tips, how to prepare a sucessful project:

- concentrate on delivering results and achieving impact

- concrete impact on tourism development /increasing tourism flows

- build strong partnerhips, networks among different stakehloders and create new opportunities for businesses

- exploring synergies between tourism and other sectors ( gastronomy, arts, fashion, sports,… ) involving local communities

- good promotion/visibility of your activities (involvement of SMEs, regional (local), national tourism organisations, public authorities, media).

- using digital tools for promoting tourism offer

- sustainability of results (the initiative should not end with the end of co-financing – this should be the begining…)

Cooperation with the Council of Europe on its “European Cultural Routes” programme + Organisation of fairs on cultural tourism“Crossroads of Europe”.

Cooperation with European Travel Commission (ETC) food fairs & festivals portal to promote European traditions and culinary heritage www.tastingeurope.com + transnational itineraries on www.visiteurope.com;

Cooperation with UNESCO in order to enhance the visibility of UNESCO sites in Europe as tourism destinations.

How do we support 'cultural tourism'?

The European Tourism Indicator System (ETIS) for Sustainable Management of Tourist Destinations (1)

A tool to support destinations in monitoring and in measuring their sustainable tourism performances , not a certification scheme. Launched in 2013, revised toolkit in 2016.

• Simple to use (easy for any destination to measure and improve their sustainability)

• Destination led

• A system that involves, engages and empowers stakeholders

• Flexible and suitable for any destination, (on voluntarybasis)

• Toolkit as a guiding tool – to equip stakeholders with the skills needed to implement a system of indicators in their destination

European Tourism Indicator System (ETIS)for Sustainable Management of Tourist Destinations (2)

The ETIS toolkit provides the primary support (guidelines) , a step-by-step guide to the implementation of the System, explanations of what the indicators are and how to use them.

ETIS has been tested in around 200 destinations and is available at:

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tourism/sustainable-

tourism/indicators/index_en.htm

Step 1. Raise Awareness

Step 2. Create a Destination Profile

Step 3. Form a Stakeholder Working Group (SWG)

Step 4. Establish Roles and Responsibilities

Step 5. Collect and Record Data

Step 6. Analyse results

Step 7. Enable ongoing Development and Continuous

improvement

Re

turn

to

SW

G to

ag

ree p

rioritie

s a

nd

develo

p a

pla

n o

f action

How ETIS works: The Seven Step Guide to ETISImplementation

Destination management related indicators

A.1 Sustainable Tourism

Management in Tourism

Enterprises

A.1.1

Percentage of tourism enterprises/establishments in the

destination using a voluntary certification/labelling for

environmental/quality/sustainability and/or Corporate Social

Responsability measures

A.2.1Percentage of tourists and same day visitors that are satisfied with

their overall experience in the destination

A.2.2 Percentage of repeat/return visitors (within 5 years)

A.2 Customer

Satisfaction

A.

De

stin

atio

n

ma

na

ge

me

nt

Economic value indicatorsB

. Eco

no

mic

Val

ue

B.1 Tourism Flow (volume &

value) at the Destination

B.1.1 Number of tourist nights per month

B.1.2 Number of same day visitors per month

B.1.3Relative contribution of tourism to the destination's economy (% GDP)

B.1.4 Daily spending per overnight tourist

B.1.5 Daily spending per same day visitor

B.2 Tourism Enterprise(s) Performance

B.2.1 Average length of stay of tourists (nights)

B.2.2Occupancy rate in commercial accommodation establishments per month and average for the year

B.3 Quantity and Quality of

Employment

B.3.1Direct tourism employment as percentage of total employment in the destination

B.3.2Percentage of jobs in tourism that are seasonal

B.4 Tourism Supply Chain

B.4.1Percentage of locally produced food, drink, goods and services sourced by the destinations tourism enterprises

Social and cultural impact indicators

C.1.1 Number of tourists per 100 residents

C.1.2Percentage of residents who are satisfied with tourism in the

destination (per month/season)

C.1.3Number of beds available in commercial accomodation

establishment per 100 residents

C.1.4 Number of second homes per 100 homes

C.2 Health and Safety C.2.1 Percentage of tourists who register a complaint with the police

C.3.1 Percentage of men and women employed in the tourism sector

C.3.2Percentage of tourism enterprises where the general manager

position is held by a woman

C.4.1Percentage of rooms in commercial accomodation establishments

accessible for people with disabilities

C.4.2Percentage of commercial accommodation establishments

participating in recognised accessibility information schemes

C.4.3Percentage of public transport that is accessible to people with

disabilities and with specific access requirements

C.4.4

Percentage of tourist attractions that are accessible to people with

disabilities and/or participating in recognised accessibility

information schemes

C.5.1Percentage of residents that are satisfied with the impacts of

tourism on destination's identity

C.5.2Percentage of the destination’s events that are focused on

traditional/local culture and heritage

C.4

Inclusion/AccessibilityC. S

ocia

l and

Cul

tura

l Im

pact

C.5 Protecting and

Enhancing Cultural

Heritage, Local Identity

and cultural Assets

C.1 Community/Social

Impact

C.3 Gender Equality

Environmental impact indicatorsD.1.1

Percentage of tourists and same day visitors using different modes

of transport to arrive at the destination

D.1.2Percentage of tourists and same day visitors using local/soft

mobility/public transport services to get around the destination

D.1.3Average travel (km) by tourists and same day visitors from home to

the destination

D.1.4Average carbon footprint of tourists and same day visitors travelling

from home to the destination

D.2.1

Percentage of tourism enterprises involved in climate change

mitigation schemes—such as: CO2 offset, low energy systems,

etc.—and “adaptation” responses and actions

D.2.2Percentage of tourism accommodation and attraction infrastructure

located in “vulnerable zones”

D.3.1Waste production per tourist night compared to general population

waste production per person (kilos)

D.3.2Percentage of tourism enterprises separating different types of

waste

D.3.3Percentage of total waste recycled per tourist compared to total

waste recycled per resident per year

D.4 Sewage Treatment D.4.1Percentage of sewage from the destination treated at least at

secondary level prior to discharge

D.5.1Water consumption per tourist night compared to general

population water consumption per resident night

D.5.2Percentage of tourism enterprises taking actions to reduce water

consumption

D.5.3 Percentage of tourism enterprises using recycled water

D.6.1Energy consumption per tourist night compared to general

population energy consumption per resident night

D.6.2Percentage of tourism enterprises that take actions to reduce

energy consumption

D.6.3

Percentage of annual amount of energy consumed from renewable

sources (Mwh) compared to overall energy consumption at

destination level per year

D.7 Landscape and

Biodiversity ManagementD.7.1

Percentage of local enterprises in the tourism sector actively

supporting protection, conservation, and management of local

biodiversity and landscapes.

D.1 Reducing Transport

Impact

D. E

nviro

nmen

tal Im

pact

D.2 Climate Change

D.3 Solid Waste

Management

D.5 Water Management

D.6 Energy Usage

Upcoming major EU tourism events

- European Tourism Day, 29 November, Brussels

"Tourism and synrgies with cultural and creative industries"

- Joint event UNWTO - EC on sustainable and responsable tourism, tourism ethics, April 2017, Poland (tbc)

Date: in 12 pts

EU funding opportunities for tourism

17 November 2016

Ilona Lelonek Husting,

Policy Officer, Unit ‘Tourism, Emerging and Creative Industries’, Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROWTH), European Commission

EU Funds…

80 % of the EU budget is managed by national or regional governments.

1. EU funds managed centrally by the Commission /ExecutiveAgencies, available through European Commission open calls for proposals (e,g part of the COSME, Erasmus+ ) http://ec.europa.eu/contracts_grants/

2. EU funds managed through shared management with MemberStates (European Structural and Investment Funds)

Contact : Managing authorities in each Member State

*Financial instruments available through financial intermediariesin Member States selected by the European Investment

• Fund (EIF)

COSME - EU programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs

• Total budget of €2.3billion (2014-2020)

• COSME supports SMEs in the areas:

• • Facilitating access to finance• http://europa.eu/youreurope/business/funding-grants/access-to-

finance/index_en.htm

• • Supporting internationalisation and access to markets

• • Creating an environment favourable to competitiveness

• • Encouraging an entrepreneurial culture• http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/cosme_en

Tourism actions earmarked under COSME

• Budget depending on decision of the COSME Committee (2015:

9MLN EUR, 2016: 4,5MLN EUR, 2017 possibly 5.4MLN EUR)

• EU-level investments complementing investments made through

other funding programmes. (e.g skills are supported through

Erasmus + or European Social Fund. Small infrastructure,

protection of cultural heritage and environmental investments can

be implemented by regions trough European Structural and

Investment Funds (ESIF)).

Focus on:

• development and promotion of transnational tourism offer

• trans-national dimension / European added-value

• involvemet of SMEs

25

Tourism actions planned under COSME 2017 (1)Total budget for tourism 5.4 MLN EUR

Objective 1)Creating conditions for a favourable and competitive environment for tourism businesses, in particular through enhanced socio-economic and market intelligence and exchange of best practices

• a) provision of additional content for the “Virtual Tourism Observatory” portal, to provide the most updated statistical information, analysis and mapping of policy and legislation relevant for the EU tourism sector. (500.000EUR)

• https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/vto/?field_section_tid=151

• b) organisations of a number of events

• European Tourism Forum (Presidency event) and the European Tourism Day + other workshops and targeted events on different topics e.g Digital tourism network (400.000 EUR)

Tourism actions planned under COSME 2017 (2)

Objective 2) Diversifying and increasing the visibility of Europe's transnational tourism offer

• (a) a call for proposals to support the promotion anddevelopment of transnational thematic tourism products. Aparticular focus will be given to exploiting synergies betweentourism and cultural and creative industries.

• Total budget 1.5 MLN EUR

• Publication foreseen Q2 of 2017

• http://ec.europa.eu/growth/contracts-grants/calls-for-proposals_en

Tourism actions planned under COSME 2017 (3)

• (b) the European Destinations of Excellence (EDEN)

• Ad-hoc grants for "Promotion of existing European Destinations ofExcellence" (500.000 EUR)

• (c) the cooperation will be strengthened with the European Travel Commission (ETC) through an ad-hoc grant for extensive actions to promote Europe as a tourist destination. The focus will be on transnational thematic products such as: cultural tourism, creative industries and high-end products, gastronomy, natural heritage, etc.

• (2.5 MLN EUR)

Date: in 12 pts

Skills Study "Mapping and Performance check of the supply side of tourism education and training" (February 2016).

Mismatch between needs of industry and education offer

• Lack of basic skills (intercultural, interpersonal, languages)

• Need to adapt to rapid technological change, new trends and customers' needs

Poor image of tourism careers, seasonality

• Part-time, temporary work, high turnover

• Poor job quality (weak training culture, uninspiring career paths, inequitable salaries)

"New Skills Agenda"

• On 7th June, 2016, the Commission adopted the "New Skills Agenda" - aims at promoting skills development, including the mutual recognition of qualifications, supporting vocational training and higher education and reaping the full potential of digital jobs.

• It contains a Blueprint for Sectorial cooperation on skills where tourism was identified as one of the six pilot sectors to pursue specific actions based on an industry-led approach.

• http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1223

Erasmus+ fund for skills in tourism

Call for proposals to be publish in January 2017 on Sector's Skills Alliance, Budget : 4 million EUR for one European Alliance over a four-year period.

The Alliance must be led by representatives of industry and include education and training providers. The fund will support the set-up of a platform of sectorial key stakeholders who will propose actions and recommendations for the next 5/10 years, including the roll out at national level, in close cooperation with Member States and with the involvement of key national and/or regional stakeholders.

COSME is also supporting skills in tourism

Apart the 5.4M EUR earmarked to tourism actions, COSME will finance a call for tender ( to be published in Q1 2017).

The aim: to support a dedicated skills action covering several sectors, including tourism, for an indicative budget of 800.000 EUR per sector over a period of one year.

The tourism strand will focus on the following type of support actions: i) digital and management skills, ii) customer relations and intercultural skills and iii) promoting the image of tourism careers.

COSME supports actions to boost Entrepreneurship

•Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs - cross-border programme facilitating exchange of entrepreneurial and management experience

http://www.erasmus-entrepreneurs.eu/index.php

33

COSME - Commission actions to boost entrepreneurship and support SMEs

• Your Europe Business Portal http://europa.eu/youreurope/business/index_en.htm

• Enterprise Europe Network http://een.ec.europa.eu/

• Aim: encourage business cooperation at European level, find partners, promote technology transfer,

http://een.ec.europa.eu/about/branches/lithuania

local point in Kaunas, Klaipeda and Vilnius

The EEN Sector Group "Tourism and cultural heritage" - brings together Network experts in the sector of tourism and cultural heritage.

• SME Internationalisation https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-

databases/smeip/ clusters internationalisation, guidebooks, helpdesk

• Single portal on Access to Finance http://europa.eu/youreurope/business/funding-grants/access-to-finance/index_en.htm 34

Portal www.access2finance.eu Financial instruments (Business loans, microfinance, guarantees and venture capital) are available for start-ups, entrepreneurs and companies of any size or sector. Every year the EU supports more than 200 000 businesses

European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) 2014-2020 – impact of € 450 billion….

• ERDF supports regional and national programmes in the Member States, along 11 "thematic objectives and investment priorities". The most relevant for the tourism sector :

• Research and innovation (N°1)

• Information and Communication Technologies (N°2)

• Competitiveness of SMEs (N°3)

• Shift to a low-carbon economy (N°4)

• Environmental protection and resource efficiency (N°6)

• Employment and support for labour mobility (N°8)

• Education, skills and lifelong learning (N°10)

• Guidance fiche: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docgener/informat/2014/guidance_tourism.pdf

European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

Tourism will play a prominent role in ERDF investment as well asrelated investments into the conservation, protection, promotion anddevelopment of natural and cultural heritage with about € 8 billion ofplanned ERDF allocation.Small-scale infrastructure is eligible.

- "European Territorial Cooperation" (ETC) relevant for tourism:

Cross-border (Interreg A), Transnational (Interreg B) or Interregional co-operation programmes (Interreg C).

Contributing also to "Macro-regional strategies" (Baltic sea strategy)

Programme: Interreg V-A - Poland-Denmark-Germany-Lithuania-Sweden (South Baltic) http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/EN/atlas/programmes/2014-2020/xxx/2014TC16RFCB013

http://2014-2020.southbaltic.eu/index/

EU Structural Investments Funds 2014-2020, where to find info?

Operational Programme for Lithuania, total budget:7,887,798,520.00 http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/EN/atlas/programmes/2014-

2020/lithuania/2014lt16maop001

Managing authority (Finansų ministerija, Lukiškių g. 2,LT-01512 Vilnius, +370 5 2194 437 http://www.finmin.lt)

Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Lithuania

Šventaragio g. 2,01510 Vilnius

********

EU level: European Commission DG REGIO http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.cfm

Joint Reseach Center - The Smart Specialisation Platform provides professional advice to EU countries and regions for the design and implementation of their research and innovation strategies for smart specialisation (RIS3). http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/home

LIFE Programme – supporting environmental and nature conservation projects throughout the EU

Structure and budget for 2014-2020

2 sub-programmes:

• • Environment, including as priorities areas environment and resource efficiency, nature and biodiversity, and governance and information

• • Climate Action, including as priorities areas adaptation, mitigation and governance and information

• Budget: €3,456.7 million (€2,592.5 m for ENV, €864.2 m for CLIMA)http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/about/documents/life2014-2020.pdf

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/about/index.htm#life2014

Other EU funds…

The Investment Plan for Europe and a new European Fund for

Strategic Investments (EFSI) http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/jobs-

growth-investment/plan/index_en.htm

Investment and innovation window (EIB)

SME window (EIF)

Creative Europe Programme

http://ec.europa.eu/culture/calls/index_en.htm

A comprehensive "Guide on EU funding 2014-2020

for the tourism sector" with examples of projects:

http://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/tourism/support-business_en

Contact details

European Commission, Tourism

website:

http://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/t

ourism/index_en.htm

Unit F4. Tourism, Emerging and

Creative Industries

GROW-F4@ec.europa.eu Thank you for

your attention