SKÅL INTERNATIONAL – MAURITIUS – NUMBER 369 Secretariat: Mrs. M Ramburn, C/o Tropical Heat Holidays SSR Avenue – Sodnac - Quatre-Bornes Tel: +[230] 425 0244 Fax: +[230] 427 00 23 Mob : +[230] 250 57 64 E-mail :
[email protected] Website:www.skalmauritius.org Term 2009 / 2011 Newsletter – Issue No 15 Dear Skålleagues Our previous Function was held to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Skål International on the World Skål Day. On this occasion, we had the Honorary Consul of Hungary, Mr. Guy Hugnin, who was nominated as Skål Mauritius Honorary Member in recognition for his sustained contribution towards our Tourism Industry, and as a Founder Member of Skål Mauritius. Our next World Congress will be held in November in Budapest, Hungary, and Guy Hugnin will welcome you for any assistance you may require. 1. Skål Mauritius Function:Our last Function was held at La Vanille Reserve des Mascareignes to celebrate the International Day for the Environment. Skålleagues present had the opportunity to savour the attractions of La Vanille and Vallee du Paradis, and in the process, appreciate their efforts towards the restoration of our flora and fauna. Every Skålleague was given an endemic plant to take back home to participate in this Skål initiative for a Greener & Cleaner Mauritius. We thank Skålleagues Owen & Mary Ann Griffiths, and Maguy Gassian, for this marvellous and enriching experience.
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2. Skål Mauritius Workshop:You will recall that our workshop was held on the 3rd April 2009. An Action Plan was then circulated to all Members. You have been copied the Memorandum which we sent to the Ministry of Finance regarding one of the main topics covered, namely the Regulations on Payment Terms. Another main topic covered was the project “Maurice Ile Durable”, and the Environment related initiatives. The preliminary contacts have already been made with the relevant responsible persons to further collaborate in this direction to support Green Initiatives. Skål Mauritius had planned a cleaning and replanting session of endemic plants at Ile au Phare in conjunction with the students of the Hotel School on Saturday 16th May 09. Unfortunately we had to postpone due to very bad weather conditions. We have now reached Winter Season and the students are preparing themselves for their exams. Hence this Activity will be rescheduled for the beginning of summer. You will be kept informed accordingly.
3. Skål Mauritius sponsors the Best Students of the Hotel School :Skål Mauritius has sponsored the Best Students in Tourism of the Hotel School which has become a recurrent Skål Activity. The best students are Chaya Motur for Tourism Inbound and Jessica Marie Huet for Tourism Outbound. The ceremony was held on the 11th May at the Hotel School and Skål Mauritius was represented by our Director of Finance and Secretary, namely Mr. & Mrs. S Ramburn.
4. Presence of Skal International Mauritius at Hotel World Fair:The Skal Club of Mauritius was present at the recent Hotel World Trade Fair which was held from the 16th to 19th June 2009 at the Swami Vivekananda Conference Centre at Pailles. Our Stand was located at the entrance of the Fair which provided us maximum visibility and was a very fruitful membership development exercise! The Executive Committee members have ensured a permanent presence over these three days to answer the various queries from visitors. Several Skal members have seized this opportunity to exhibit their brochures which were distributed from our Stand.
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We thank our Director Functions & Events Odile Montocchio for the organisation of our stand at the Hotel World, Patrick Floral Design for the decoration and Daiichi (Mauritius) Ltd for their logistics support.
5. Fund Raising Exercise 2009:We have rescheduled our Raffle to raise funds for Saturday 26 September 2009. We wish to reiterate our requests to Skålleagues and Friends of Skål for your active participation and generous sponsorship! Our Secretary and Past President Christine Le Clézio will ensure coordination of same. “Ask yourself what you can do for your Club… and not what your Club can do for you…” 6. Membership Development Skal Mauritius:We are happy to announce that quite a few new Members have been accepted internationally, namely:I.Mr. Guness Balnock – General Manager of Budget Car Rental II.Mrs. Ulrike Rambert – Marketing Manager of Surya Spa III.Mrs. Marie David-Malie – Hotel School IV.Mr. Nico Kux – General Manager - Kuxville V.Mr. Devana Nadan – General Manager - Pearle Beach Hotel VI.Mr. Patrick Martinez – Managing Director - Inter Continental Hotel & Resort VII.Mr. Neel Ram – Managing Director - Blue Dahlia Co Ltd We also welcome our New Members from Rodrigues Island:I.Mr. Willy Auguste – Director - Mourouk Ebony Hotel II.Mr. Jean Pierre Lim Kim – Director – Tour Operator JP Excursions 3
III.Mr. Jean Gaetan Armoogum – General Manager – Cotton Bay Hotel & Resorts IV.Mr Laval Baptiste – Director – La Belle Rodriguaise V.Mrs. Nathalie Biram – Station Manager – Air Mauritius Ltd Rodrigues Island VI.Mr. Sydney Carre – General Manager – Le Repaire Hotel & Resort VII.Mrs. Jennifer Marot – Marketing Consultant – Mourouk Ebony Hotel VIII.Mrs. Gail Leong Kye – Manager Finance & Administration – Airports of Rodrigues Ltd IX.Mr. Nigel Waterstone – Airport Manager – Airports of Rodrigues Ltd X.Mrs. Carine Prosper – Ferst – Manager – Rodrigues Tourism Office XI.Mr. Christophe Sujiwoon – Marketing Manager – Tour Operator & Rod 2000 Tours XII.Mr. Maxy Andre – GM – La Residence Esplanade XIII.Mr. Jean Philippe Begue – Director – Auberge Les Filaos XIV.Mrs. Margarette Begue – Director – Tropical Rod XV.Mr. J Benoit Jolicoeur – GM – Residence Foulsafat XVI.Mr. J McGill Meunier – Director – Ti Pavillon XVII.Mr. Philippe Nairac – Director – Auberge Pointe Goelands XVIII.Mr. Armand Perrine – Manager Maintenance – Airports Rodrigues Ltd XIX.Ms. Mariana Meunier – Rodrigues Tourist Office XX.Mr. Aurele Anquetil Andre – François Leguat Ltd
Welcome to the Skål Family & to the World of Skål ! 7. Skål Rodrigues Island:The Skål Mauritius delegation which consisted of the President, Director Membership Development, and Director Website, were in Rodrigues at the end of April to meet the Local Authorities, the Presidents of the Tourism Associations, and to contact potential members for membership development. A cocktail was organised at Mourouk Ebony Hotel where we had the opportunity to explain the objectives of Skål International, the activities of Skål Mauritius, and our affiliation with Skål Asia. We have succeeded to recruit 20 new members with some more in the pipeline. 4
The new members will temporarily form part of Skål Mauritius, until the creation of the Skål Club of Rodrigues. This achievement was acclaimed by our World President, Mrs. Hulya Aslantas, at the Skål Asian Area Congress in Incheon Korea.
8. Skål Mauritius at South Africa – Indaba Tourism Trade Fair :Our Skålleague Suzy Edouard attended the Indaba Trade Fair in Durban where she was welcomed by the President of Skal Club of Durban, Mr. Steve Pillai and The President of Skal Kwa Zulu Natal Midlands, Ms Bunny Bhoola.
The Skål International Stand was used as our platform for the distribution of the Magazine Visit Mauritius & Rodrigues
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9. Air Mauritius Ltd & Skål International Mauritius:We are pleased to announce that Skål Mauritius has formalized a Letter of Agreement with our National Airline, whereas Air Mauritius Ltd confirms its offer for a “20% discount on the applicable economy fare for the travel of the Members of Skål Club on MK Services. The discount will be given to Skål Club Members, as well as one accompanying partner, based in Mauritius and Rodrigues, and will be applicable only when they are traveling to attend events organized by Skål Club International “. Our Secretariat will be pleased to assist you to take advantage of this facility with its relevant applicable conditions. We thank Air Mauritius Ltd for their unflinching support towards Skål Mauritius to sustain our activities in the promotion of tourism.
10. Skål Asian Area Congress / 21st – 25th May 09 / Korea :The 39th Congress of the Asian Area was held in Incheon Korea at the end of May 09 and Skål Mauritius was officially represented by our Vice President Denis Béchard for the renewal of the Skål Asia Executive Committee. Our World President, Mrs. Hulya Aslantas, made a strong appeal towards all Skålleagues for a fresh mind set to face new challenges in front of us.
The Membership Development conducted by Mauritius was mentioned, as well as the future creation of Skål Club of Rodrigues.
During the AGM, our Skålleague Ibrahim Ayoub made a power point presentation to present the Tourism Magazine “Visit Mauritius & Rodrigues”, and the potential synergy with the Asian Area for additional Tourism Promotion for the benefit of all stakeholders. The Magazine was distributed during the B2B Session after the AGM, which was attended by the leading business people of Asia. 6
We are pleased to inform you that Joan Béchard will represent Skål Asian Area Secretariat, and Christine Le Clézio as Internal Auditor. We congratulate our Skålleagues for their sustained efforts to ensure that the Asian Region remains sustainable with the fastest growth rate at International level.
11. Second Edition of “Visit Mauritius and Rodrigues”:Our Circulars dated 18th March 09 and 8th April 09 refer in this respect. The Second Issue is being prepared and its official launch is planned for the World Travel Market Trade Fair in London in November 09. The topics covered will include places of interest, cultural events, environment issues, accommodation, cuisine, shopping, fashion, sports, various tourism activities, and a section on Economy & Business. Rodrigues Island will also be included and the specific aspects of its Tourism Activity will be covered. Skål Mauritius will sponsor all its Members as per last year. However, we encourage all Skålleagues to further participate in this venture with their direct advertising which is a Win Win situation for Skål Mauritius and the Tourism stakeholders. 12. Skål International : Skål International, the World’s largest Organisation of Tourism Professionals, has celebrated its 75th Anniversary on the 27th April 09 in Paris, which has been an enormous success with a full house for each event!
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13. Tips to Make the Most of Your Skal Membership:(i) Skålleagues are encouraged to make use of Skål Mauritius logo on their Business Cards, emails, and Letterheads. (ii) Skål Members are also encouraged to indicate your membership with Skål Mauritius at the Entrance of your Business Activity. (iii) Skålleagues are requested to channel any information you may wish to circulate to our members, through our Secretariat, to enable optimum use of our information support tools, and validation by the EC, as may be required. (iv) The “Functions Policy” is effective since the 1st June and you are requested to ensure compliance for good governance. Please help your Club to help you! What we promise, we deliver… and more!
With our very best regards, Skål! Suzy Edouard Director PR & Communications
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