ECOLOGICAL TRANSITION / Sustainable Tourism Fund: efficiency and profitability | FAXINFO

Led by Harry Lapomarède, project manager at the CCISM, the system has raised awareness among more than 300 qualified local companies. 58 of them then expressed their interest in an intense period for the tourism sector. In terms of results, 32 diagnostics were carried out to assess the compatibility of the projects with the fund's criteria, 22 applications were submitted to the Agir pour la Transition platform and 17 applications were accepted (5 restaurants, 11 accommodations and one mixed), which gives a conversion rate of 77%. With an average funding of €28.806, projects around photovoltaic consumption (94%) and the use of air mixers (53%) are the most recurrent, followed by greening (41%) and non-food waste management (23,5%). In total, €1.089.226 of investment has been injected into the local economy with nearly 45% of financial support from ADEME (€489.535). The impact of these investments is significant, both for the beneficiaries and for the territory, boosting the local economy and supporting projects with a strong ecological dimension.
For the president of the CCISM, Angèle Dormoy, the Interprofessional Consular Chamber of Saint-Martin has invested in sustainable tourism and its implementation in the territory: “We need a tourism that is different from the others. We had this desire to contribute and continue to improve tourism in Saint-Martin by finding the axes of sustainable tourism. On this World Tourism Day, we have proven that we know how to get back on track and no territory has committed itself as much as ours, our know-how must also be different”.
With 17 projects accepted, Fabien Sésé, secretary general of the prefecture, is pleased with this success: “By launching the Sustainable Tourism Fund in 2021, the State's desire was that each region of France have an operator who is an entry point to support socio-professionals in accessing the fund. There was no reason why there should not be one in Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy. The CCISM has offered to play the role of helping with the various diagnoses (…) and we have great projects”.
By working together with the Collectivité and the Saint-Martin Tourist Office to address this subject of ecological transition and the use of this tool, Julien Bataille, director of the CCISM, was keen to find concrete solutions to anticipate new economic trends: “Our job is to create business, the real economy, that's what we do every day at the CCISM. What we're looking for is efficiency and pragmatism, and that's what made the Sustainable Tourism Fund successful, not a lot of paperwork and direct support, it's efficient and profitable for businesses.” _Vx