Jean Castex, the Prime Minister, presented from Amboise (Indre-et-Loire), this Saturday at the very beginning of the afternoon, a plan to 1.9 billion euros to revive tourism in France.
The sector has been particularly hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and the objective is clear: to strengthen the country's position as the world's leading tourist destination.
Before the crisis, France could do cocorico, it welcomed 90 million foreign tourists in 2019 (+ 4%) and finished on the third step of the podium in terms of international revenue with 57.9 billion euros.
Gladly lyrical and visibly delighted to arrive with his hands full, Jean Castex first made a long plea for the tricolor attractions.
“Not a city, not a village which does not offer a pretty church to discover, a museum, a festival, etc.
», Welcomed the Prime Minister.
Before listing, in bulk, the 49 properties listed as World Heritage by UNESCO, the 9 mountain ranges which make France the 1st ski area in the world with 350 resorts, or even its "more than 8000 museums, 6000 festivals, and nearly 45,000 monuments, parks and gardens protected as historical monuments ”.
Do not throw any more!
Aid for the most disadvantaged
But to stay ahead, the French tourism sector must modernize. This envelope of 1.9 billion euros will consist mainly of loans. In detail, 750 million euros will take the form of tourism loans, a tool of the public bank Bpifrance, dedicated to SMEs and VSEs in the tourism sector who need to invest in order to modernize. The government will also offer a 500 million euro tourism stimulus loan, long-term loans from the Bank of the Territories, intended to support major investments by businesses or communities.
Finally, 650 million euros will be distributed in new loans, with a jumble: aid for the most disadvantaged to go on vacation (supporting the departure of 50,000 young people and 100,000 seniors in precarious situations per year by 2025 ), others to bring exhibitors back to exhibitions and fairs, or even help to develop responsible tourism.
Two million jobs at stake
Because it is one of the other objectives of this tourism plan: to make France the first sustainable tourism destination by 2030. The classification of establishments (one to five stars) will thus be modernized to integrate sustainable development (and digitization of services).
But… the professionals of the sector wanted as a priority that the plan foresees a staggering of the repayment of loans guaranteed by the State (PGE), over 10 to 12 years, against four years currently. "It is essential to allow companies to continue to operate and to invest," insisted this week Umih, the main employers' union in the hotel and restaurant industry. Bruno Le Maire, the Minister of the Economy, for his part seemed to close the door to any “systematic measure of spreading or abandonment” of EMPs, the reimbursement of which will begin in March 2022.
Finally, tourism, "it is not only a great showcase, but also a powerful engine of job creation", underlined Jean Castex during his presentation this Saturday.
In France, today there are 2 million direct and indirect jobs.
One of the measures, for example, provides for the deployment of reception and orientation desks for seasonal workers in tourist areas.
