“Talking about the monopoly of travel agencies is ignorance.” With this title was released a statement from the Chamber that brings together travel agencies to respond to President Milei’s accusation last night, when he presented his Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU).
The FAEVYT – Argentine Federation of Travel and Tourism Business Associations – which represents the over 5,000 Argentine agencies declared: “We deeply regret the lack of knowledge in defining our activity as monopolistic when, on the contrary, it concerns one of the most diversified and decentralized sectors of tourism.
“More than 80% of travel agencies are SMEs working with an open register to establish any company that meets the requirements to carry out a professional and responsible task, also guaranteeing passengers’ rights,” reads the note.
According to the agencies “We also compete openly with direct suppliers such as hotels and airlines. Calling our business monopolistic is like saying that because we go in the open sky, airlines can come without any authorization or registration,” they warned.
“The first thing we need to ask ourselves is where are the protections, guarantees and security of passengers. We are available to dialogue with the Government and to provide all the information necessary to transform this paradigm shift into a concrete growth opportunity for a thriving sector like ours since, as stated in the DNU itself presented,” the document adds. And it adds: “It is not possible to ignore the importance that the development of tourism has in the economic growth of the country, especially when it has unparalleled tourist attractions and in a context of increasing globalization.”
FAEVYT also announced its interest and willingness to work, together with the government, to improve the conditions of travel agencies. eliminate bureaucracy and optimize online opportunities with the expectations of what was announced always defending the work of travel agencies and the rights of tourists.
“In our opinion, improving competitiveness does not mean eliminating all registrations, since the existence of a specific control reduces the number of cases that defend the consumer and protects passengers by ensuring that they rely on the services of authorized and trained agencies, made up of professionals capable of responding. Consumer defense is an effective tool against existing and registered businesses, otherwise it will become a pure illusion and the main victims will be travellers,” she added.
The DNU includes three laws that have a direct impact on your tourism business. On the one hand, the repeal of law no. 18,829 which leaves the activity completely liberalized. «This will result in greater competition between companies in the sector and to the benefit of citizens», reads the decree signed by Milei.
Furthermore, the decree also repeals law no. 18,828 (which regulates the activity of accommodation in the country and create a registry for them) and no. 26,356 (which regulates l SSTC Tourist Systems in Time-Sharing). The explanation was to “free up the private tourist accommodation business and lighten its bureaucratic burdens”, we read in the official decree.
Mario Ijelman, president of AVIABUE, the Association of Travel and Tourism Agencies of Buenos Aires, commented on the scope of the decree: “our first concern is that the sector is considered monopolistic when there are more than 5 thousand travel and tour agencies operator”. he clarifies…
“They are all registered in a Register of agencies, which is open, with minimum requirements that can offer a guarantee of quality. If the State believes that the Register hinders competition, we are willing to improve the situation. But the quality of the service offered must be guaranteed That the passenger is sure that the agency provides the requested services”, he explained.
Today 80% of travel agencies are SMEs that generate a large amount of manpower, in a pyramidal manner. That is, it extends to sectors such as transportation, hotels, etc.
According to the manager “eliminating the Register does not mean improving competitiveness since the existence of a specific control will reduce the number of cases that go to Consumer Defense and will protect passengers by guaranteeing them a responsible service capable of guaranteeing a correct service.”
SN
Source: Clarin
