Benissa closes Tourism Sustainability Plan after four years and €2.45m European investment
Benissa council celebrated a gala at the Centre d'Art Taller d'Ivars to mark the completion of the Tourism Sustainability Plan in Destination, financed with European Next Generation funds.
The council put the finishing touch to four years of work with an institutional event held on Thursday at the Centre d'Art Taller d'Ivars, titled 'Benissa is transforming'. The gathering was attended by municipal representatives, technicians and local tourism sector business owners.
Tourism councillor Virginia Pérez took stock of the programme's trajectory: "Four years ago, at an event like this, we announced that we had been awarded one of the largest grants our municipality has ever received. An investment of €2.45 million financed by the European Union. At that time we talked of a great opportunity. Today we can say that opportunity has become a reality." Pérez added that the plan's objective was always twofold: "We were clear that this investment had to serve to transform Benissa and improve it for the people who visit us, but also and, above all, for the people who live here throughout the year".
Four lines of action
The plan divided its budget into four major blocks: €510,000 to drive ecological and sustainable transformation, €530,000 dedicated to improving energy efficiency, €492,000 invested in digitalisation and €920,000 aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of the tourist destination. In total, 23 different actions were completed, among which stands out the launch of a Smart Office capable of analysing visitor flows and the use of municipal resources through sensors and geolocation.
The Tourism councillor also wanted to highlight the human effort behind the project: "Behind these 23 actions there are many hours of work, meetings, paperwork, projects, contracting, coordination and monitoring, but also many difficulties, unforeseen circumstances and decisions that we have had to resolve along the way." More than twenty public employees from the council itself and more than thirty-one external companies and professionals took part in the plan's execution.
From marketing to territory management
During the gala, a round table discussion was also held, sponsored by Muebles Martínez, in which the evolution of the sector was debated, from simple promotion to more comprehensive territory management. Participants included, among others, the municipal Tourism technician, Loli Vicens; the president of the Benissa Tourism Business Association, Noelia Rodríguez, and Robert Cabrera, founder and first president of Club Natació Benissa.
Sien Consulting CEO Mariano Torres described the paradigm shift the plan has brought about: "We no longer see tourism solely through the lens of promotion; management combined with territory is something important that has come to stay." According to municipal sources, the council intends to preserve the infrastructure created and the new management model despite no longer having this extraordinary European financing, and is considering incorporating citizens into a future Tourism Board.