Iran’s Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Abbas Salehi says the designation of Tabriz, the capital of the country’s northwestern East Azarbaijan province, as the tourism capital of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is of great significance.
He underlined that the Tabriz 2018 event is an opportunity to take advantage of the merits of the city to contribute to the development of the locality as well as the whole country, reported the Persian-language Mehr News Agency.
“Tabriz being designated as the tourism capital of Islamic countries this year provides an ideal opportunity to get the glorious history of Azarbaijan and Iran known to the world,” said the minister.
He further said Tabriz has always played a key role in national development.
“Tabriz and Azarbaijan have always been the hub of Iran’s development, and they can be and should be the hub of Iran’s development today, too,” said Salehi.
He said among the honours of Tabriz is that the city is rich in culture and home to literary figures, adding, “This advantage should be utilized.”
Head of Iran’s Cultural Heritage Organization Ali-Asghar Mounesan also said Tabriz 2018 is the most important event in Iran’s tourism sector this year.
Mounesan said around 1,800 cultural heritage works from Tabriz have been registered on the national List of Cultural Heritage Works.
“Tabriz is 3,500 years old, which alone is an invaluable asset for the city,” said the official.
He underscored that Tabriz has been designated by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as the capital of Muslim countries in 2018, and added, “We should prove to the Muslim world that we deserve to be hosting tourists in 2018.”
He noted the event could usher in a new era for further promotion of tourism, not only in Tabriz, but across Iran.
Mounesan made the remarks at the event’s opening ceremony held in Tabriz on January 5, 2018, bringing together a host of authorities from the tourist industry, consul generals of Turkey and Azerbaijan, and ambassadors of Indonesia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Tajikistan.
