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Al-Ahram Weekly 13 - 19 January 2000 Issue No. 464 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 13 - 19 January 2000 Issue No. 464
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Heritage Special Books Profile Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Fair offers
Egypt is gearing up to welcome participants of the Mediterranean Travel Fair (MTF), scheduled to be held in Cairo over 1-3 March. The fair, expected to be a big success, is being organised by the prestigious Reed Travel Exhibition company and is sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism. EgyptAir will offer a 75 per cent discount for travel agencies and a 50 per cent discount for other participants. The Chamber of Travel Agencies will be responsible for receiving the delegations at the airport and transporting them to their hotels and the Cairo International Conference Centre (CICC). The chamber is also holding a reception on the Giza plateau on the first day of the fair which will feature Egyptian folkloric arts and oriental food.Pre- and post-fair trips to historic sites and other places of interest will be organised for participants at reduced prices. Furthermore, the Chamber of Hotels will provide about 2,500 free tourist nights for the buyers who are invited by Reed Travel Exhibition.
So far, about 1,000 buyers from 76 countries have declared their interest in the MTF and to further encourage participation charter flight operators in Egypt will organise a one-day trip for tour operators from Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Germany and Russia to visit the fair and return the same day. The trips from Russia might extend over two days.
Preparations are already well under way for a press centre at the CICC.
BirdLife directory
BirdLife International, the main international organisation concerned with the conservation of birds and their habitats, recently held a one-day workshop in Cairo. BirdLife International, formerly known as the International Council for Bird Preservation (ICBP), has been active in the field of nature conservation in Egypt since 1988.
The workshop launched a directory of important bird areas in Egypt, a landmark publication that lists 34 sites as Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of global importance for birds. Egypt's IBAs include a variety of habitats: wetlands, high altitude mountains, desert wadis (valleys), coastal plains and marine islands.
The workshop showed how the directory could be used for biodiversity conservation and environmental management. There were also discussions about ways to enhance the conservation and management of Egypt's IBAs found inside and outside the National Protected Area Network.
Participants in the workshop included individuals from the public and private sectors, such as the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA), governmental bodies, universities, NGOs and businesses.
Compiled by Rehab Saad
