“Value for Money” will not be replacing “The Sunny Side of Life” as the slogan to entice holidaymakers from all over the world to come to the Maldives, with a final decision yet to be made on the future direction for promoting the nation’s central economic income source, the country’s Tourism Minister has said.
The Maldives National Broadcasting Corporation (MNBC) yesterday reported that the “Value for Money” slogan had been settled on in order to reflect a changing focus in enticing travellers to the Maldives by targeting a more middle-income audience.
However, while the new tourism slogan to replace “The Sunny Side of Life” is expected to focus on “value”, Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr Mariyam Zulfa claimed that news of the slogan had been “reported incorrectly” during an address to 200 Italian journalists.
Speaking to the journalists at Male’ International Airport as part of a visit to celebrate ongoing support from the country’s travel market, Zulfa said that she believed her comments had been taken out of context.
“I said we will probably go towards a slogan reflecting a value for money product,” she added.
Zulfa said that she “didn’t think any final decision on a slogan had been made,” and that any eventual agreement would involve “lots of meetings” with stakeholders such as the Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB) before a final decision is announced.
When contacted by Minivan News, a spokesperson for MNBC claimed that the report had been based on comments made by the Tourism Minister to one of the company’s journalists.
In a statement, the Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB) said that the reports had been incorrect, but added it would be announcing a new slogan in the next few weeks.
“However, we can confirm today that the new slogan will not be ‘Value for Money’,” the promotion board stated.
Echoing the Tourism Minister’s statements, the MTPB added that it remained in discussions with as wide a group of tourism industry stakeholders as possible in attempts to better serve the market.
“The Minister has made it explicitly clear that the new slogan will be designed so that it appeals to a wide range of potential tourists; including those with high incomes as well as tourists seeking a more affordable holiday in the Maldives,” the MTPB added.
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