The Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund announced today the approval of a $1,030,350 grant to Bodegas de Argentina for a program to consolidate wine tourism in the country.
The project will support development of a wine tourism model with three pilot routes based in the provinces of Mendoza, San Juan and Neuquén-Río Negro. Mendoza and San Juan together represent 95 per cent of Argentina’s wine production. Neuquén and Río Negro are in Patagonia, an area already covered by a certain volume of international tourism. The project will also focus on the quality of associated products and services offered and the promotion of communication and marketing skills.
“The Argentine wine industry has ranked among the world’s top 10 wine exporters in recent years,” said MIF Team Leader Adela Moreda. “More than 100 wineries also took advantage of a growing interest in how wine is made and how the industry works and opened their doors to tourism. So, there is potential to create synergies with the promotion and sale of wine and the diversification of the country’s tourism activities.”
With the new MIF-financed project, strengthening of the wine tourism brand in Argentina will benefit 280 small and medium-sized enterprises, that will also have access to a management improvement needs assessment. At least 70 companies will receive technical assistance and customized consulting services and will be linked with new services to wine tourism routes. Around 600 professionals will participate in awareness and training programs on good practices in wine industry management.
Bodegas de Argentina is a nonprofit association created in 2001by the merger of other existing associations, bringing together over 190 wineries. National and regional consultative boards will be set up with public and private sector representation.
MIF, an autonomous fund administered by the IDB, supports private sector development in Latin America and the Caribbean, focusing on microenterprise and small business.