Tourism state exams: Minister praises smooth running of BTS and BEP exams

The Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts, Mountaga DIAO, paid a visit to the main examination center for the tourism, hotel management, catering and reception diplomas on Thursday morning to see how the tests were progressing.

“The exams are running smoothly and without a hitch; it’s the ideal we’ve been looking for, and we’ve found it,” the Minister declared.

In all, there are 447 candidates, 351 of them girls (nearly 79%) and 96 boys (21%), in 22 rooms at the Ibrahima Bèye, Sacoura Badiane and Oumar Ben Khatab Dia elementary school in Fass. Of this total, 408 candidates took part in the Brevet d’études professionnelles (BEP) exams and 39 in the Brevet de technicien supérieur (BTS). Only 15 absences were recorded for the BEP.

Students come from public and private schools and training institutes, including the Ecole Nationale de Formation Hôtelière et Touristique (ENFHT).

The Minister took the opportunity to reiterate the importance of quality human resources, a wish dear to His Excellency Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar FAYE, President of the Republic, in the perspective of systemic change in Senegal.

“It has to be said that, to revive the tourism sector, it is important to have quality human resources; this is a presidential directive,” insisted the Minister, who is committed to ensuring that, from this year onwards, tourism is the driving force behind Senegal’s economic growth.

Aware of the capacity of the tourism value chain to create jobs, the Minister pledged to spare no effort in motivating young people to train.

“We’re going to work together with all the players (the process began yesterday in Saly) to review all the players’ proposals, because this is a sector that must necessarily contribute to wealth creation,” he stressed. In addition to all the staff involved, the Minister also thanked the chairman of the jury, Baba Ndoye, who had called on all the school heads to create the conditions for the perfect organization of the exams.