The opening of the Sunrise Attitude Hotel in Belle-Mare is a strong signal, full of optimism and hope, as to the revival of the tourism industry following the reopening of our borders said the Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth.
Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth, who was the guest of honor at the event, praised the efforts of the hotel’s developers, Lavastone and the Attitude Group in his speech for achieving their ambition in completing the construction of the hotel in question despite the pandemic that disrupted the tourism sector.
“The inauguration of this hotel demonstrates the willingness of the tourism industry to overcome the obstacles and exploit the potential of the sector despite the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said the Prime Minister. Pravind Jugnauth also said that the inauguration of this hotel shows the contribution of the Attitude Group to the socio-economic development of the country.
The Head of Government suggested that “the time has come for the revival of tourism. “The reopening of the borders on October 1, the deployment of the vaccination program and the start of the activities of the national airline bring optimism for a better future for the tourism industry,” he said.
At the outset, the Prime Minister dwelt on the importance of the relationship between public and private sector actors in these difficult times, caused by the health, economic and social consequences of the pandemic of COVID-19.
“We are confident that with the involvement and commitment of our partners in the private sector, we will achieve the objectives of tourist arrivals that we have set for the current fiscal year (…) The measures adopted and actions taken today will allow this sector to rebound. And in the future, we will forge an even stronger tourism economy than before the pandemic,” he said, noting that our determination and resilience have always helped the country to recover.
GM support for workers
In addition, the PM mentioned that from March 2020 to September 2021, the government has disbursed more than Rs 10.5 billion and that this support program has been extended until December 2021, for an additional amount of Rs 2.4 billion.
The Prime Minister also listed the various other measures that have been put in place, including the financial support program of up to Rs 15.9 billion for hotel companies and tourism operators through the Mauritius Investment Corporation (MIC); the introduction of the ‘Apart hotel scheme’ allowing hotels to convert their hotel rooms into apartments that can be sold; and the exemption from the payment of the license fee for a period of two years for licensees of the Beach Authority and Tourism Authority; and the revised program of support for the renovation and construction of hotels on state land.
Steven Obeegadoo: “We have successfully reopened”
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism Steven Obeegadoo believes Mauritius has succeeded in reopening its borders. “We have passed the 29,000 mark of arrivals since the reopening of our borders. This shows that tourists feel safe here,” he said.
By extension, the Minister of Tourism said that of these 29,000 tourist arrivals, “only 19 positive cases of Covid-19 have been identified.
Like the Prime Minister, Steven Obeegadoo also recalled that the support of the government to help the tourism sector in this difficult period has been decisive in the sense that no tourism operator has put the key under the mat. And above all, no massive layoffs have been recorded in this sector.
For his part, the General Manager of Attitude Hotels, Jean Michel Pitot said he hoped that his new baby, the Sunrise Attitude Hotel, will be able to position itself among the best hotels on the island and, by extension, will occupy an important place in the hearts of Mauritians and tourists.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Attitude, Jean Michel Pitot, spoke about the Sunrise Attitude, the latest addition to the collection of eco-engaged hotels. “This hotel is an acquisition of the Emerald Hotel, which became Emerald Beach Attitude, the third hotel of the group, then newly created and which will have allowed the Attitude brand to take off.
