nimrUd baito minister of tourism, Kurdistan

Keynote Presentation Topic

"Exploring the Cradle of Civilization"

Kurdistan Region is located in northern Iraq. It borders Turkey to the South and Iran to the West-North. It is distinguished by its geographical diversity as being largely mountainous, with deep valleys and vast plains. But one important point is that this area, with unclimbed peaks and undiscovered caves, has remained virtually unexplored. The Ministry of Tourism in Kurdistan Region invites Summit delegates to be its partners in defining adventure travel for its future. Minister Baito will bring delegates along a cultural, historical and diverse geographic journey to discover this region together – the cradle for many civilizations throughout history – to enrich our connectivity and understanding.

Biography

Minister for Tourism of Kurdistan and elected general secretary for the Assyrian Patriotic Party in 2006, of which he’s be associated with since its 1973 founding, Mr. Baito represents the autonomous northern Iraqi region of Kurdistan. During his early involvement in the APP, his activism on behalf of the Assyrians landed him in charge of Assyrian student’s activities and the Assyrian Culture Club in Baghdad, and saw him arrested twice by the Department of the State Security in 1978-1979.  Fluent in English and trained as an electrical engineer, he spent 10 years as an IT specialist with Hewlett Packard, and now spends energy on adventure tourism development in the mountainous, lake-filled, river-flowing region outside the more visible region of Iraq. More information available at www.tourismkurdistan.com.