Michèlle Canes
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília – A first international seminar on dealing with tourists who cross Brazil's borders ( 1º Seminário Internacional de Políticas Migratórias e Atendimento ao Turista para Agentes Públicos de Fronteira) began on Monday in the city of Bagé, Rio Grande do Sul. The objective of the seminar is to improve the treatment the tourists receive and make their stay in Brazil more enjoyable.

"We need to train our personnel that work on the border. Much has been done in our airports and ports. Now we need to improve our work with tourists who come by land," says Luiz Paulo Barreto, the executive secretary at the Ministry of Justice. Many tourists coming into Brazil by car have questions because they do not plan their trip through a travel agency, he explains. So our border personnel should be able to answer their questions, says Barreto.

Participating in the seminar, besides Brazilian representatives, are personnel from Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. Besides improving the reception of tourists, the seminar is also looking into ways of increasing Mercosur tourism in general.

Translation: Allen Bennett

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