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News Brief No. 11; March 21, 1999
INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE EXPANDS AND MILK GROTTO ROAD REHABILITATION TO BEGIN Heads of State of Chile and Morocco Join International Committee - In March the President of the Republic of Chile, His Excellency Eduardo Frei and His Majesty King Hassan of Morocco became members of the Bethlehem 2000 International Committee. The two eminent heads of state joined a group of world leaders which include among others Pope John Paul II, Russian President Boris Yeltsin, French President Jacques Chirac, Colombian President Andreas Pastrana, Norwegian Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik. The heads of state received the invitation to join the Bethlehem 2000 International Committee from Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.
Work on the Rehabilitation of the Milk Grotto Road to Begin in Mid-April - The rehabilitation of one of the most important touristic roads of Bethlehem - the Milk Grotto Road will begin in mid-April and is expected to be completed by September 1999. The rehabilitation of the infrastructure, the tiling and renovation of the facades of the historical buildings along the Milk Grotto Road are being financed by the government of Greece in cooperation with the World Bank. The entire rehabilitation of the road will cost USD 700,000.
Palestinian and Israeli Tour Operators Briefed on Bethlehem 2000 - Sixty members of the Palestinian and Israeli tourism industry participated in a one-day workshop and site visit in Bethlehem arranged by the Bethlehem 2000 Project Authority. The one-day workshop and site visit was the first which familiarized the Palestinian and Israeli tour operators and tourism companies with the expanded tourism circuits for tourists and pilgrims.
ITB - The Bethlehem 2000 Project Authority participated at the ITB (Europe's largest tourism fair) in Berlin for the third consecutive year this March. The fair allowed for more exposure of the Palestinian tourism market in general and Bethlehem in particular. The Bethlehem 2000 Project Authority held a workshop for interested tour operators to introduce the new tourism markets.
Solomon's Pools - Bethlehem 2000 Project Authority Minister and Coordinator General Dr. Nabeel Kassis and President of the Mission 2000 in France and Head of the George Pompidou Center Mr. Jean Jacques Aillagon, signed an agreement which launched the Garden Project near Solomon's Pools which is being funded by the French Government. |
