The GEF-funded CATENATE project, on behalf of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation and the Ministry of Climate Change, Environment and Energy, invites you to an introductory webinar on the draft National Ecotourism Standards and the draft Certification Framework for the Maldives.
The Maldives has a draft national ecotourism framework. Developed under the GEF-funded CATENATE project on the evidence base of the Baseline Assessment and the international standards review, it brings together a shared vision for Maldivian ecotourism, a set of standards across three pillars, and a tiered system through which operators can be recognised for their performance. This webinar introduces that framework to the government stakeholders and tourism operators who will work with it.
The framework matters to two audiences at once. For government, it offers a coherent national instrument that connects the obligations operators already hold under Maldivian law to a recognised standard of ecotourism performance. It positions the Maldives among the leading ecotourism destinations.
For tourism operators, it clarifies what responsible ecotourism looks like in practice, and opens voluntary pathways to recognition for those who choose to go beyond the legal baseline.
The session is the first step before formal consultation. Attending it means arriving at that consultation already informed, and being among the first to understand how the framework is intended to work.
The webinar is introductory. It explains the vision, the three pillars of the standards, and the three tiers of the certification ladder in plain terms. It does not cover indicator tables, scoring rules, or audit procedures, which belong to the detailed technical documents and to later operator-facing sessions. Around one hour is set aside, with the final ten minutes for questions.
The webinar is an opportunity to understand what the framework is, how it is structured across the marine, terrestrial, and cultural dimensions of ecotourism, and what it means for government and for tourism operators. The session is introductory and non-technical. It is designed to inform, and to open the way to the consultation phase in which your input will shape the framework before it is finalised.
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