Following the request of the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Lithuania, UNWTO has launched the first-ever blended capacity building course on “Tourism Destination: Policy and Management” in Palanga, Lithuania, organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Economy and the UNWTO.Themis Foundation.

This three-phase course was inaugurated on 17th April by Šarūnas Vaitkus, mayor of Palanga, Lithuania; Laura Paulauskienė, head of Tourism Policy Division, Investment and Export Department, Ministry of Economy of Lithuania and Christopher Imbsen, Deputy Regional Director for Europe, Regional Programme for Europe, UNWTO.

The on-site and on-line initiative, delivered by Dr Edit Szivas and Dr Davina Stanford, aims to provide the participants with knowledge, skills, tools and a forum for discussion and reflection on tourism planning, development and management as well as the key policy dimensions and examine tourism policies, the creation of tourism development plans and regulatory mechanisms and the application of these in a variety of locations throughout the world.

During phase one of the course, the participants engaged in theoretical and practical presentations on Tourism Market, Impacts of Tourism, Tourism Destination Management and Sustainable Tourism Policy & Strategy and went on a field trip to Šventoji. In phase two, participants are expected to further in various topics with the participation of international and foreign organizations, while in phase three they will, among other, present action plans of Šventoji.