Skål and Asofuer promote tourism alliance between Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La Graciosa

Skål Internacional Canarias Islas Orientales and the Fuerteventura Tourism Business Association (ASOFUER) held the professional event “Eastern Islands: Strategic challenges for the future of tourism” on Thursday at the Fuerteventura Conference and Training Centre. The event was conceived as a forum for dialogue and analysis involving business owners, professionals, public authorities and specialists linked to the tourism sector in Lanzarote and Fuerteventura.

The event brought together experiences, needs and proposals relating to some of the challenges currently affecting the competitiveness of tourism destinations in the Eastern Islands. It strengthened cooperation between the private sector and public authorities and encouraged the exchange of knowledge between the two islands.

The institutional opening emphasised the need to create stable forums for collaboration, helping to anticipate changes in tourism and address jointly the issues affecting both businesses and destinations.

Jéssica de León, the Canary Islands Government’s Minister for Tourism and Employment, congratulated Skål Internacional and ASOFUER on organising the event and highlighted Lanzarote and Fuerteventura’s ability to work together on the sector’s main challenges. “Once again, this forum demonstrates the strength of the eastern axis and its ability to organise and mobilise, bringing public authorities and professionals around the same table to discuss and analyse the issues and challenges that will shape the present and future of our tourism sector. Fuerteventura and Lanzarote are a clear example of shared vision, cooperation and initiative.”

She also highlighted the islands’ significant contribution to tourism, saying that it accounts for “more than 30% of GDP, more than approximately 24% of all arrivals in the Canary Islands and approximately €9 billion in tourist spending across the two islands so far this year”.

De León also framed the debate around the need to move towards a tourism model that prioritises creating value over purely quantitative growth.

“In islands such as Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, the real challenge is not to keep growing in volume, but to manage visitor flows better and grow in value, reducing pressure on the land and resources.”

The minister explained that the Canary Islands Government is working towards a new paradigm based on three pillars: the wellbeing of residents, the regeneration and preservation of the environment, and the competitiveness and resilience of the tourism industry.

The programme began with a panel on tourism safety, viewed as directly linked to the quality, confidence and competitiveness of destinations. The discussion addressed coordination between public authorities, security forces, businesses and professionals, as well as the need to strengthen prevention and communication in tourist areas.

A subsequent panel on Human Resources: training, recruitment and talent retention examined one of the main challenges facing businesses today. Topics included difficulties filling certain professional roles, training, access to housing, workers’ transport, absenteeism and temporary incapacity leave, as well as the need for measures to attract and retain talent in the tourism sector.

On this subject, Jéssica de León noted that the Canary Islands Government is working on initiatives directly related to the issues raised at the event. These include creating more stable, higher-quality employment by retaining talent; innovation and digitalisation in the sector; safe and sustainable connectivity; and greater integration of the local economy and Canary Islands suppliers into the tourism value chain.

The final major section focused on artificial intelligence and technology in the tourism sector, bringing together perspectives from public authorities, technology companies and the accommodation sector. The discussion examined how these tools could improve efficiency, automate processes, provide a better understanding of customers and support decision-making. It also covered cybersecurity, data protection and the need for human oversight.

A shared vision for Lanzarote and Fuerteventura

ASOFUER president Antonio Hormiga highlighted the importance of the sector itself taking an active part in shaping responses to the challenges facing tourism. “Tourism challenges are increasingly cross-cutting and deeply interconnected. Safety, the availability of professionals, housing, mobility, digitalisation and artificial intelligence directly affect the competitiveness of our businesses and the quality of our destinations. Events like this allow us to listen to the sector, share experiences and develop concrete proposals that can then be put to public authorities.”

Fernando Benítez González, president of Skål International Canarias Islas Orientales, highlighted the initiative’s inter-island focus and Skål’s ability to bring tourism professionals together. “Lanzarote and Fuerteventura share many of their challenges, as well as their opportunities. Skål wants to help connect professionals, encourage the exchange of knowledge and create spaces where we can speak freely about the sector’s real problems and, above all, put forward solutions.”

Fuerteventura Island Council President Lola García also stressed the need to address these challenges through cooperation between institutions and the business community. “We support quality tourism that looks after the land and improves the lives of our people. That requires joint work by public authorities, businesses and professionals. Listening to those who know the sector first-hand helps us coordinate our response to challenges such as housing, mobility and training, which Fuerteventura and Lanzarote share,” said Lola García.

Growing in value and strengthening competitiveness

The event’s conclusions highlighted the importance of strengthening public-private collaboration, improving coordination between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, and creating mechanisms to turn professional discussions into concrete proposals for action.

Jéssica de León summed up this goal, saying the challenge is to “increase the added value of the tourist experience and ensure that the wealth generated benefits all of Canarian society fairly and equitably”.

Skål Internacional Canarias Islas Orientales and ASOFUER said that events of this kind should not only analyse existing problems, but also identify measures that businesses can implement directly, actions requiring public-private collaboration, and proposals to be put to the relevant authorities.

The event thus reinforces the need for regular meetings between professionals in Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, enabling them to share knowledge, anticipate change and build a common vision for the future of two destinations that face many of the same tourism challenges.

A combination of talent, innovation, safety, knowledge, institutional cooperation and business capability is emerging as one of the key factors in developing tourism that is more competitive and resilient, and able to generate greater economic and social value in the Eastern Islands.