President Solih meets tourism consultant George Corbin

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on Thursday met with the tourism and restaurant industry consultant George Corbin, one of the greatest contributors to the introduction of tourism to Maldives.

During the meeting held at the President’s office, President Solih and Corbin held discussions focused on ways to further strengthen the tourism sector in Maldives.

Welcoming him to Maldives, President expressed his gratitude for Corbin’s participation in the events held to mark the 50th anniversary of the Maldives’ tourism industry.

He went on to speak about the administration’s commitment to developing the tourism sector and highlighted the recent introduction of homestay tourism in the Maldives.

Meanwhile, Corbin described the Maldives’ tourism sector's progress as "superb" and said the future looked bright, despite room for progress.

He also highlighted the importance of attracting more middle-class travellers.

Moreover, both President Solih and Corbin discussed strengthening the domestic transportation network.

During this discussion, Corbin described the building of new domestic airports as a positive development.

Both went on to discuss ways to ease travel for tourists from distant markets like the Americas.

The meeting ended with Corbin expressing his gratitude for the "touching" hospitality he received in Maldives.

Corbin, arrived in Maldives on February 15 to participate in the celebratory activities of the golden jubilee of Maldivian tourism, marking the 50th anniversary since its inception. He is set to partake in a forum of Maldivian tourism pioneers. The forum scheduled to take place on February 17, will see the participation of Minister Naseem, Champa Hussain Afeef and Mohamed Umar Manik.

Corbin played a significant role in bringing the first tourism group to the Maldives. This was during the month of February, in 1972. The first resort in the Maldives, Kurumba Maldives, was opened just eight months later, in October 1972.