Citing strong growth in tourism and demands from within the industry, the President Christina Fernández de Kirchner announced in an act at the Government House the creation of the new ministry, to be led by the current Secretary of Tourism Enrique Meyer.

President Fernandez emphasized the importance of the tourism industry, saying it is one of the most important sources of jobs and income in Argentina. “Since 2003, the amount of dollars and tourists that enter the country has doubled,” she said.

She noted that investments in accommodations in 2003 have returned a profit of 1,000 percent and that Argentina’s destinations – Cordoba, Mendoza, and Rosario, as well as Buenos Aires and Mar del Plata – are known worldwide.

“We want to keep driving this type of investment that generates jobs,” she said, and pointed out that “the business sector will appreciate these efforts and accompany them with strong investments.”

Attempts to attract business events are bearing fruit as well, according to the president. “When we launched the plan to promote international events we received 145 events, signifying 19th place in the world in overall events celebrated,” she said. She went on to say that “the city of Buenos Aires received the most events” in Latin America.

Similarly, Argentines are travelling abroad in larger numbers. According to the president, “Argentina’s tourism since 2003 has experienced exponential growth. So exponential that last year international tourism fell eight percent, while in Argentina, tourism to the exterior increased by eight percent.”

Almost 5 million Argentines travelled outside of the country in 2009, according to President Fernández.

The new Minister of Tourism will be sworn in next Wednesday in a ceremony at the Casa Rosada.

Photo by Beatrice Murch

Tourists have long felt the pull of Argentina’s stunning landscapes, vibrant culture and sumptuous gastronomy. However, as demand soars for a low cost tummy tuck or affordable fertility treatment, a new attraction is drawing scores of international visitors to the country: the surgeon’s knife. Reports show that the number of patients from the US flying to Argentina for medical procedures has increased by 75% in the last 12 months.

The world over, the medical tourism industry is on the rebound. Emerging from the snares of the recent economic recession, it is projected to be a US$100bn global industry by 2010, according to the Deloitte Centre for Health Solutions. For millions of people, integrating medical procedures with travel is the future of healthcare. For a rapidly increasing number, the destination of choice is Argentina.

“Unquestionably, finances are driving the trend,” asserts Dr Diego Schavelzon, co-founder of Buenos Aires aesthetic surgery, Clínica ByS and president of the Argentine Chamber of Plastic Surgery Centres. He explains that a facelift costing US$15,000 in the US is priced at US$5,000 in Argentina. Fertility treatments offered by doctors in London for £50,000 come to around US$15,000 in top Buenos Aires clinics.

Low Price, High Quality

“Not only is treatment cheap here, but it is generally extremely high quality,” adds Dr Guillermo Blugerman, also of Clínica ByS and the president of the Argentine Association of Cosmetic Medicine and Surgery. He attests that Argentina’s economic history is significant in the development of their medical expertise. “Before 2002, when the Argentine peso was fixed to the dollar, travel became very feasible. Abroad, we learnt new techniques and bought advanced equipment.”

Argentine doctors developed highly specialised surgical skills, focussing on aesthetic treatments, artificial insemination and cardiology. When the economy imploded and the currency was devalued in 2002, prices dropped. Expertly honed medical methods fell to a third of their previous price, making them instantly accessible to a wider global market.

Photo by Anais Plancoulaine

Tourists at airport in Argentina

“The first people to take advantage of this were the Chileans,” Dr Blugerman recalls. “Word travelled fast about our excellent medical practices, which now sat at affordable prices.” In the two years following Argentina’s economic crisis, Clínica ByS alone experienced an influx of over 3,000 Chilean aesthetic surgery patients.

Today, medical tourists travel to Argentina primarily from less medically advanced Latin American countries, as well as expensive parts of Europe and the United States. Dr Schavelzon emphasises: “We are not necessarily better than anyone else; we just have a lot working in our favour. There are great surgeries all over the world, and there are cheap destinations. Argentina combines the two.”

Packaging the ‘Paris of the South’

“What better way to recover from surgery than a stroll through the Palermo parks, or enjoying steak and Malbec?” Laura Szerman is an in-country representative for PlacidWay, a North American online resource provider for the medical tourism industry. Through such companies, tourists can buy packages, which include consultations, treatment, flights, accommodation, a mobile phone and on-call assistant to guide them through the experience.

“People love Buenos Aires because it’s the ‘Paris of Latin America’,” she explains. One of her patients, ‘OT’, travelled here for rhinoplasty and breast enlargement. She says: “I always wanted to travel to Argentina because I considered it the most cosmopolitan country of South America. I felt that I was on an amazing vacation while about to have elective cosmetic surgery.”

However, Szerman stresses that, “clients must remember they are medical tourists; they are here for a medical procedure.” Patients should not expect to undergo surgery, then dance tango and lie on a beach. After plastic surgery, you should actually avoid sunlight. “Expect a magical trip, but not a miracle recovery.  At PlacidWay, we take great pains to ensure the experience is correctly promoted.”

Nonetheless, most medical tourists seem fully aware of what lies ahead. Szerman calls this: “research mode”. Having decided to spend thousands to traverse the globe for complex surgery, they arrive well informed of the procedures, leaving nothing to chance. The key to the explosion and development of the medical tourism phenomenon is that it can be researched, primarily via the internet.

Pramod Goel is the founder of PlacidWay. With a database of more than 5,000 doctors and clinics in over 60 countries, he describes how “hidden treasures”, like the expertise of the Argentine medical industry, are now entirely accessible. “The healthcare industry is no longer localised. We created a portal detailing exactly what is out there.”

Photo by Beatrice Murch

Hormone Injection for IVF treatment.

He believes that medical tourism has grown because, “not only is the entire planet more easily reached, thanks to the advances in transport, but there is enough information at our fingertips to discover a country’s top doctors, without ever having set foot there.”

Goel asserts that people need no longer fear being conned or put at risk by ‘cowboys’ (novice surgeons attempting complex procedures). Listings are available of clinics which are both certified and recommended, based on exhaustive research, carried out by in-country experts in the medicine, technology, travel and hospitality industries.

Dr Sergio Pasqualini is an infertility treatment expert with the Fundación Halitus in Buenos Aires. He agrees that the depth and clarity of sites like PlacidWay has made medical tourism appealingly manageable. “Packages omit dangers of paying for the unknown. It’s also relaxing to know that everything has been planned.” Goel champions the simplicity of buying a package medical holiday as a commodity: “A one-stop means of creating a memorable health tourism experience.”

However, many Argentine clinics, including Fundación Halitus and Clínica ByS say they would never offer packages, preferring to deal with patients on a purely medical level. Dr Blugerman states: “If people need advice about a hotel, we’ll give it, but we’re not organising your trip, just your body.”

“Packages are less common for infertility treatments.” Dr Pasqualini opines that the norms and complexities of the industry are entirely different to those of aesthetic surgery: “Aside from lower prices, excellence in the field and the illegality of egg donation in many countries, people tend to choose Argentina for more personal reasons: perhaps they have family here, or an emotional connection to the place.”

“Sometimes they need to be somewhere utterly removed from their life back home. Travelling for infertility treatments can be difficult. There is always a chance it won’t work.” Szerman affirms: “When people come with fertility issues, it is often very sad. These treatments can also take a painfully long time.”

The short duration of new procedures such as ‘laser surgery’ explains their popularity amongst medical tourists. They are minimally intrusive, with rapid recovery periods, leaving ample opportunity to see Argentina. To facilitate recovery time for more rigorous surgery, Szerman explains that Buenos Aires is an attractive destination for its relaxing cultural offerings. “The San Telmo feria is a favourite.”

Furthermore, Buenos Aires is considered a perfect aesthetic surgery destination due to porteños’ body image obsession. In a country where 1 in 30 of the population has gone under the knife, Dr Blugerman believes: “many feel comfortable recovering in a place where surgery is less taboo.

“Visitors must understand that there are no guarantees in medicine. However, Argentina offers some of the best surgery available. Word of this medical expertise is gradually diffusing throughout the world.”

Pramod Goel declares: “With the correct research systems in place, we can endow prospective medical tourists with the information to discover Argentina’s unique medical offerings. Thus, the medical tourism phenomenon can develop from a popular trend to a fully fledged industry.”

Photo by Beatrice Murch

As Nietzsche knew, “education decreases daily because of the raising haste.” Maya Frost also asked herself how to get her four daughters out of the US’ schooling system and within one month they decided to sell all their belongings and move abroad.

The family took this step four years ago and it was the beginning of six extravagant stories, guiding them to countless different countries all over the world and leading their lives down impressive paths. Maya, her husband Tom and their youngest daughter Talya settled in Buenos Aires two years ago and Maya has now published ‘The New Global Student’, a book about the indispensable position of internationality in education today and the possibility of avoiding paying thousands of dollars for US’ schools just by thinking outside the box. A story about personal growth, an alternative way of life and one’s own stupidity.

The lives of Frost’s daughters sounds a bit like a couple of Do It Yourself fairytales. They travelled through different continents, participated in a plethora of activities and, along the way, got fluent in a couple of languages. Adding that all this happened while avoiding the nightmare SAT, getting an even better but more stress-free global education and saving money by being out on the road, this book is a handbook for students and their parents.

“People have got the idea that education is what you get when you go to school but it’s much more than that. Education in the US isn’t very practical but it’s fancy to go to school. Students in the States are so competitive and stressed by that. If you put people under pressure to get As, it reduces their joy in learning.” Therefore, learning need not share the connotations of a puritanical sense of duty that studying tends to evoke. According to Maya, the only thing you have to do is go global.

Examples of its success are the book’s stories of people who go abroad and make a living out of their passion. One of them is the outdoor fanatic Ryan Hastreiter. His profession led him to kayaking through Uganda’s rivers for a couple of years and later become a member of Nike’s global retail projects division, settled somewhere between China and the US. Responsible for his transcontinental lifestyle was naturally his “global campus”, as he calls it.

Maya’s reason to come to Argentina wasn’t that deliberate, it was more a personal favour. “Our daughter Talya had that crazy year in Mexico and at the end of it we just asked her where she wanted to go to. She picked Buenos Aires. We had never been here before but it seems like we will stay … Argentina is not as stressed as the US and Argentines are not so competitive with each other. The students here work for themselves and don’t have the idea of being the best in class or in their group. A lot of our stress in the US is created by being so competitive.”

courtesy of Maya Frost

While her own kids are already part of the global working market, in the book she’s sharing her experience about alternative and cheap schooling all over the world. “It’s very important to be open-minded because so many things change every day. People think that they can’t pay for college so how to imagine going abroad for a year? Reality is that there are cheaper options for studying, including various stays abroad. We saved so much money because our daughters studied in so many different countries, just by avoiding to pay US’ colleges for all of them.”

Their fluency in several languages is thereby just a positive side effect. The main advantage the parents see in their stays is the personal growth. ”If you know that you took the hardest step in your life when you were 15, than you can do everything. If you didn’t take any steps until you are 30, it’s quite harder to trust that much in yourself,” says Tom as proud father of four independent young women aged between 18 and 23.

Nonetheless, it’s never too late to go abroad. A perfect example is that of Tom’s own mother. After living in her house in the US since the 1960s, she decided a couple of months ago to move and is now making a new life in Hawaii, a place where she knew no one. She’s 72.

“As an expat you feel so stupid so many times and you make so many mistakes. Tom and I met each other when we lived in Japan. We were the only foreigners in this tiny town and we often didn’t know how to behave. That’s how we started out life together and after living many years in the US, we somehow got back to that state of life where we’re just two idiots who make mistakes every day. I think it makes you less curious and feel happier to be alive.

“We think a lot about what our lives would be like if we still lived in Oregon. I can’t imagine that. A suburb doesn’t give you any creative input. I would have never written that book and now I have started working on my first novel. That wouldn’t have happened in Oregon. We would probably have worked harder and have a bigger house but we wouldn’t be so happy by living normally. People always forget about what is important in life.”

Argentine society is well known for its job-related calmness, and whereas many of the country’s populace see this as partially responsible for its economical malfunction, Maya sees an advantage in it. “People here have been down so many times that they are relaxed their expectations. They know that things can change tomorrow, they might lose their jobs and the economy might break down again. It makes them focus more on important things.”

‘The New Global Student’ is therefore not just a guide through the labyrinth of US’ educational system, but also a motivating narrative of a exemplary expat-life. “There are so many people who would be so much happier and I think for a lot of them money is just an excuse because they’re scared. I live my dream and everybody else could do that as well.”

‘The New Global Student: Skip The SAT, Save Thousands of Tuition and Get a Truly International Education’ was published in May through Three Rivers Press. The printed book isn’t available in Argentina, but you can get the Kindle-version or ebook at every online bookselling shop.

 

Photo courtesy of Neuza Nascimento

Leading British news website for the voluntary sector, Charity Finance, has revealed that the numbers of people travelling across the globe to be volunteers has rocketed in recent years. Catherine Raynor, media manager of international charity VSO, says that “the climate of redundancies is drawing in more people”.

The organisation received 2,813 enquiries for voluntary work between September and November in 2008, more than double the 1,233 that applied in the same period in 2007. “There’s an increasing sense that now is a good time to get away, spend some time abroad doing something worthwhile, and then return when the economy is back on its feet,” explains Raynor.

Oscar Garcia, professor at the University of San Martín, reports that the amount of volunteers arriving in Argentina will be on the rise in 2009, as a repercussion of the economic crisis. Most will look to help out in welfare and in activities serving basic needs of impoverished communities. He warns, however, that it is “necessary to implement infrastructure, so that the influx of volunteers can be managed and trained, because resources are lacking”.

Plenty of online agencies offer volunteer packages, with exotic countries in Latin America particularly appealing to would-be travellers. This would seem to be a good thing for worldwide NGOs. In many communities where help is desperately needed, extra hands are always welcome.

 

Photo by Kate Stanworth

In theory, the rising number of people offering their services free of charge seems great. But it isn’t all plain sailing. Many volunteers arrive at their exotic destinations unprepared, or worse still, unmotivated. Placements can be set up at the click of a button online, and the attraction for the volunteer is often the place they are going rather than the organisation they are working with. This is not helped by vague descriptions being given by online agencies. Volunteers often cannot make contact with the actual project until they have paid a large cash amount. 

Clearly volunteers are allowed to enjoy themselves, but at what cost? With lower prices, lots of sun, and beaches aplenty, the sceptic could argue that a volunteer is volunteering for their own enjoyment and their CV. A line needs to be drawn between what voluntary work defines and what constitutes an extended holiday. If volunteers are not working for the right reasons, they can become detrimental to a project.

I questioned various people currently and formerly involved with worldwide volunteer organisations to discover whether all volunteers actually benefit projects and to what extent ‘voluntourism’ exists.

Gonzalo Alarcón, 55, Colombian, formed Voluntarios de Occidente ten years ago in rural communities in Ecuador, a project which assists poor families with improved housing and youngsters with education. www.voluntariosdeoccidente.org

Jesica Franco, 27 and Roxana Mauricio, 36, are coordinators of Argentine NGO Voluntario Global, a project which provides economical and educational assistance to poor families in Argentine communities. www.voluntarioglobal.org.ar

Neuza Nascimento, 49, director of CIACAC, has been director of a community project for children and adolescents at social risk in Parada de Lucas, a shantytown in Rio de Janeiro for six years. www.ciacac.org  

Liliana González, 31, has volunteered in Brazil, Mexico and the US, working in community projects with adults and children.

Finding a volunteer project

Many people thinking about volunteering in Latin America may be concerned about their personal security on a continent notorious for petty theft and gang wars. Therefore it is natural for would-be volunteers to want to have some personal contact with someone who has experience in volunteering, and who knows how it works.

 

Photo by Kate Stanworth

This is where the big online agencies such as i-to-i, Frontier and Ikoporan step in. They are in contact with organisations worldwide. People who have never ventured so far overseas are inclined to trust them. But how much do you have to pay for this trust?

Gonzalo believes that a volunteer should pay for accommodation and food costs, so not to be a financial burden on the poor community they are helping. “My volunteers are placed with families, with 80% of the money going to them, and 20% to the project,” he says.

Roxana admits that for those who contact them directly, Voluntario Global charges just over US$300 to a volunteer who stays for three months because there is no other financial means of running the project, but those who go through online agencies pay a lot more. She admits she does not know where the rest of the money goes.

A quick browse on the Frontier website finds a placement for 12 weeks in Argentina which costs US$3,300. Volunteers get accommodation, airport pickup  - and a T-shirt! Renting a very nice apartment in Recoleta would cost US$1,500 for three months, but they are hardly going to be put there. Add a maximum of US$50 for an airport taxi and it appears that these companies are raking it in. Frontier does not deny that it takes a huge cut. “Although it is difficult to give you an exact figure, somewhere between 10% and 100% of the contribution will be applied directly to supporting the overseas project through financial support.”

Those working daily with community projects are disgusted by these statistics. Neuza alleges that it is unethical to charge such prices, especially as they see little of this money. “It’s a crime. It’s something imposed on the volunteer by these organisations and distorts the meaning of volunteer.”

Jesica is not as harsh in her criticisms. “I don’t think it’s bad. It’s a business. Although maybe it’s not fair on the volunteer, they do nothing against the law.”

However, no sympathy is left by Gonzalo for the volunteers that pay excess amounts. “The problem here is the volunteer. If they pay such vast sums of money, they are not really volunteers. They have other intentions, like tourism, fun and adventures.”

But many projects have no option but to work with these big businesses to recruit volunteers. For them, something is better than nothing.

The role of the volunteer

There are lots of different projects out there requiring various skills and knowledge, which the volunteer can use for the benefit of the project. Teaching experience, construction know-how and leadership skills are all valuable. As well as this, working in a foreign country may require the ability to speak another language.

 

Photo courtesy of Gonzalo Alarcón

It can be difficult to find a perfect speaker, but Jesica argues that it is key to a volunteer’s contribution. “It’s necessary for communication. The language and respect for a new culture are fundamental. A volunteer is limited without language skills, and is restricted to basic tasks, such as helping out in the kitchen.”

Liliana asserts that language should not be made a barrier, but admits that it is important. “I don’t agree with excluding someone from volunteering because they do not speak that language. Those who may not have the language capability may have other skills that will prove valuable to the project, and in turn the project strengthens. They should, however, make the effort to learn.”

Although volunteers with training and qualifications are often desired in their own countries, many of those going abroad fall in to the gap-year or young adventurer category, and are not guaranteed to be experts in any field. With this in mind, Jesica argues that the principal quality desired in a volunteer is “the willingness to help”.

Even if someone is heavily qualified, Neuza explains that this is not always an advantage. “A volunteer could be an expert in finance for example, but might not make the most of it due to a lack of interest and motivation.”

In order to demonstrate that they are truly motivated towards the project, it could be argued that the volunteer should treat it as if it were a paid job, and put everything into it for a substantial length of time.

“They should do five days a week, all day,” coincide Roxana and Gonzalo, “they should be 100% committed.”

Roxana explains how volunteers would ideally stay for a minimum of three months. “The first month, you are getting to know the project. In the second month, you begin to realise where you can use your skills to the best effect. From the third month and onward is where the real difference is made.”

There can also be an issue of trust between the volunteer and the organisation that employs them. There is no point in having a volunteer that does not turn up on time, or treats the experience as a holiday. “If you have committed yourself,” says Liliana, “then you should have the integrity to carry out your responsibilities.”

 

Photo courtesy of Gonzalo Alarcón

If the volunteer does not show true desire or interest Neuza suggests that volunteers are dispensable. “I had a young woman come along to do a drama workshop. She felt that she was above the children and didn’t treat them with any respect. I kindly told her not to come back the next time.”

Jesica finds that actually sacking volunteers is not very common. “If someone doesn’t know how to be a volunteer, they usually stop coming after a week or so.”

Has the volunteer made a difference?

When a volunteer takes part in a project, progression should arguably be seen. “If they didn’t make a difference, what would be the point?” asks Neuza.

Liliana admits that it goes a little deeper than that. “You can’t change the world or a community and make huge impacts in a month, six months, or even a year. It takes a continuous effort, and many people collaborating to accomplish a difference. All we can do is contribute, and work from the heart. Good things always result from that. You must focus on the present, and if you can help just one person, then than that makes a significant difference.”

Gonzalo finds that many ex-volunteers send friends to help with projects. They consequently do not have to pay large fees to help out and there is an additional element of trust because of they way they were recruited.

All agree that ‘voluntourism’ exists in some shape or form. Gonzalo is thankful that he has experienced little of this phenomenon. Neuza is willing to take the risk on most volunteers, and whether a person becomes a ‘voluntourist’ is unfortunately something learnt and dealt with later. Jesica advises would-be ‘voluntourists’ in Buenos Aires to save themselves the hassle and instead head down to Puerto Madero or walk the Caminito.

Liliana has a firm message for people thinking about volunteering just for the sake of it. “Naturally, as a visitor to a new country you will have opportunities to explore, party and enjoy. But if, as a volunteer, you lose sight of the reason why you are going in the first place then just be a tourist and don’t ‘fake the funk’. Don’t disguise yourself as a volunteer. Be honest about your intentions.”