The first ever photo exhibition showcasing the works of the official photography ambassadors of Maldives kicked off Tuesday, as the island nation’s tourism authorities step up promotional efforts amidst increasing supply.
Sponsored by Kihaa Maldives resort and supported by the Maldives Integrated Tourism Development Corporation (MITDC, the Visit Maldives Photography Ambassadors – Photo Exhibition is being held at the National Art Gallery in capital Male. It was inaugurated Tuesday afternoon by deputy tourism minister Hussein Lirar, and is open for public until Wednesday.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation’s (MMPRC) Managing Director Haris Mohamed hailed the exhibition as a significant step forward in the destination marketing efforts carried out by jointly by the state-owned corporation and the industry.
“A single photograph possesses so much power. It can make or break any [marketing] campaign,” he said.
Haris stressed that the photos shot by the ambassadors have helped MMPRC update its outdated photo library. Two similar exhibitions would be held every year to showcase the ambassadors’ works, he added.
The photographs being showcased at the two-day exhibition have been shot by MMPRC’s five photography ambassadors, including Ahmed Shuau (Instagram: Obofili), Mohamed Azmeel (Instagram: DoubleDot.mv), Shifaaz Shamoon (Instagram: Sotti.maldives), Ali Masrah (Instagram: Masrahmv) and Ramon Nasrullah Kamaluddeen (Instagram: Ramonkamaldeen).
MMPRC in August launched its Photography Ambassador Programme, signing up with the five local photographers to promote the Maldives’ tourism industry.
The photography ambassadors work closely to promote the destination, “Maldives… the sunny side of life”. The photographs taken by these ambassadors are being used on the official website as well as social media channels of MMPRC, and at international travel and trade shows such as ITB Berlin.
According to MMPRC, two exhibitions will be held every year to showcase the works of the photography ambassadors.
After years of double-digit growth in tourism, the Maldives has over the recent years observed a slowdown in growth. The government has set an ambitious target of attracting 1.5 million tourists by the end of this year, but the country has been struggling to create demand amidst a significant increase in bed capacity.
The government has recently announced new steps to maintain a structured growth in tourism, including a slowdown in leasing islands for resort development and increased marketing efforts in key markets such as China and the Middle East.