The President of the Regional Government of the Azores, José Manuel Bolieiro, defended on the evening of Thursday, 30th of September 2021, that the Azores Sustainability Charter, an initiative of the Regional Secretariat for Transport, Tourism and Energy, represents a “true treaty of norms of inspiration and guidance ”for the Region.

“In terms of environmental sustainability, the legacy of the Azores is a world reference. And it’s not just for being so, it’s also for being recognized worldwide”, also referred José Manuel Bolieiro, speaking at the end of the signing of the Azores Sustainability Booklet by the members of the XIII Regional Government.

The session took place in the city of Horta and the event was part of the World Tourism Day celebrations.

“We have an affirmed sustainability policy. We have an action plan for sustainability in our development”, praised the President of the Government, for whom steps should also be taken in other areas and there should be a “progressive path” of “social, economic and also cultural sustainability”.

José Manuel Bolieiro also recalled that this moment was seized by the Executive to reflect “on the sustainability” of tourism “in its most holistic view”, with the XIII Regional Government having a “deep idea of territorial cohesion”, in which “not even the biggest nor the smallest island will be left behind in the defined objectives”.

Before that, the Regional Secretary for Transport, Tourism and Energy, Mário Mota Borges, highlighted the work carried out with regard to tourism recovery for the post-covid-19 period.

“The Azores has been consolidating its position as a tourist destination for Nature, increasingly associated with an idyllic, welcoming and sustainable image. These are differentiating forces that bring us great benefits, but also great responsibility. It is, for all that, that we reaffirm today our leading role in the development of sustainable tourism”, he said.

The document signed on Thursday publicly assumes the commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals, declared by the United Nations, and to the sustainability of the Azores tourist destination.

The Azores Sustainability Charter is an initiative of the Regional Secretariat for Transport, Tourism and Energy and already has 155 subscribing entities, with more than 600 commitments aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved.

This initiative took place in the same week that the Region receives the EarthCheck auditor, an entity certified by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), within the scope of the renewal process of the Silver level certification as a Sustainable Tourist Destination.

Source: Governo dos Açores