Malaga, Dec 14 (EFE) - The capital of Malaga will host next January the second edition of Malaga Education Week, which will consist of four events to strengthen the city as a destination to learn Spanish and loyalty to the public interested in the industry of language tourism and study abroad.
The meeting, which will take place from 14 to 20 January, is an initiative of the Association of Spanish Schools of Malaga (NACEM), which has the support of the City of Malaga, Costa del Sol Tourism, Extenda, Turespaña, Turismo Andaluz and the University of Malaga, among others.
The councillor for Tourism and Promotion of the city, María del Mar Martín Rojo, has highlighted that language tourism is a "booming" segment and Malaga has become one of the leading destinations in the teaching of Spanish at national level, so boosting it is part of the Strategic Tourism Plan of Malaga 2016-2020.
He recalled that last year was achieved to increase by 17.6 percent the number of students in the capital, and added that events such as Malaga Education Week contribute to improving the positioning of the city in this sector.
For his part, the CEO of Costa del Sol Tourism, Jacobo Florido, has stressed the importance of language tourism by stating that it is "a market niche with undeniable potential and a very significant emotional burden" because in addition to learning Spanish, students can "catch" the lifestyle of Malaga.
The president of NACEM, José Casero, said that "thanks to the change that has experienced in recent years in Malaga, the sector of Spanish schools has also been favored.
In this sense, the director of the Secretariat of the International Spanish Center of the UMA, Antonio Pelaez, has noted that there are segments of language tourism that are "demanding new experiences" and Malaga has the characteristics to provide them.
The meeting, which is aimed at teachers, senior academics, institutional representatives, international educators, agents and educational consultants, will consist of four events: training sessions, a Spanish language congress, ST Alphe Spain and two familiarisation trips.
ST Alphe Spain, an international conference for teachers of the language tourism sector, is one of eleven events organised by the British company StudyTravel Ltd. worldwide.
In addition, on the occasion of the celebration of this event there will be an exhibition in the central Larios street from 8 to 31 January with forty images with texts in Spanish and English that define the importance of language tourism for the city of Malaga. EFE
Credits https://www.lavanguardia.com/ocio/viajes/20181214/453542016835/malaga-suma-cuatro-eventos-para-afianzarse-como-destino-para-aprender-espanol.html