With the arrival of delegates from both FIFA headquarters, as well as from the participating countries, for the Under 20 Women’s World Cup to be held in November, an opportunity for tourists to visit remains open.
These were the comments made by Culture and Tourism Minister, Tobias Kulang, at the unveiling of the World Cup winner’s trophy yesterday.
With the arrival of the many visitors during FIFA’s week long workshop, the belief is that sport will now benefit the country in more arenas than just on the playing pitch.
After the missed opportunity with the Pacific Games, the Culture and Tourism Ministry is now working on strategies that allow more involvement with sport.
During the Pacific Games last year, over 4,000 athletes and officials visited Papua New Guinea, with foreign journalists and tourists also taking the opportunity to visit.
Earlier in the year, Sports Foundation CEO, Peter Tsiamalili Jnr, had also stated that the coinciding of the PNG Games with the FIFA U20 World Cup would also be an opportunity to showcase PNG’s diverse culture. And Sport Minister, Justin Tkatchenko, holds the same belief.
The 15 visiting countries participating in this year’s World Cup, come from Europe, Asia, the Americas as well as Oceania, and plans for them to tour parts of PNG may also be an option, yet to be confirmed by the local organising committee and FIFA themselves.
