Tourism mogul hails training center, announces 4,000 new rooms

Santo Domingo.- Tourismmogul Frank Ranieri on Tuesday hailed the start of construction for aspecialized hospitality center, calling it an old dream of the east region´shoteliers, featuring modern classrooms, workshops and technologicalinfrastructure to provide training, advice and assistance to the tourism industry.

The National Technicaland Vocational Training Institute`s (INFOTEP) Hotel, Catering and Pastry School,being built in Higuey (east), willprovide services in the areas of food and beverages, lodging, tourism, languages, reception and administration.

"We´ve been callingfor such centers to be built for decades, where all staff could be trained, notuniversities, have 30 universities. We need good technicians, bakers, waiters,maids, cooks," said the president of the Grupo Puntacana.

Ranieri said 4,000 additionalrooms will open in the Punta Cana-Bavaro area next year, which means training foraround 5,000 employees will be required.

The center, being builton the site of the old hotel Naranjo, with the French Development Agency´ssupport, will have four workshops and 12 classrooms for 888 participants, spreadamong three shifts.