The 4th Ouagadougou International Tourism and Hotel Fair (SITHO) opened at Ouagadougou on Thursday under the theme "tourism, gender, training and employment," according to reports.

The SITHO 2007 edition, which is attended by delegates from Cote d'Ivoire, Benin, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Togo and Cameroon, is an exchange forum for the development of African tourism, and a marketing opportunity for tour and travel professionals.

Burkina-Faso Arts, Tourism and Communication Minister Filippe Sawadogo said the fair will attract more tour operators to the sub- region where they can directly meet African tourist service providers.

"Like many other world capitals, it was important for Africa to come up with a new tourist concept with a view to providing a one- stop shop for prestigious travel industry labels," he said.

The fair is notably marked by the presence of Cote d'Ivoire which hopes to reclaim, following the return of peace, its rightful place in the subregional tourist circuit and even in the world.

Cote d'Ivoire's Tourism Minister Sidiki Konate said there can be no tourism without peace, and there can be no economic development without peace.

"With the return of peace, the people of Cote d'Ivoire will repay Burkina-Faso, and indeed the rest of Africa and the world, all the solidarity expressed to them as they emerged from this difficult period," he said.

Burkina-Faso Prime Minister Tertius Zongo said the development of tourism can only be achieved within a regional framework.

"The organization of this fair enables us to present to the world what we have to offer," he said, noting tourism requires a regional approach.

(Xinhua News Agency October 26, 2007)