The countries of the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) should work towards encouraging travel within the organization and developing joint products to attract more tourists from outside the region, Bulgaria’s Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova has said.

Over 53% of all foreign tourists visiting Bulgaria come from BSEC member states, Angelkova said at a conference of culture and tourism ministers of BSEC countries held in Sochi, Russia, according to a statement issued by the Tourism Ministry in Sofia on Thursday.

With a total of over 3.7 million people from other BSEC countries visiting Bulgaria each year, the region is a major source of revenue for the Bulgarian tourism industry.

"We should use the experience gained through cooperation in the Danube region to build upon the achieved results," Angelkova said, according to the statement.

The conference has approved the nomination of Angelkova as coordinator of the activities of the working group on tourism within the BSEC.

Angelkova was nominated to the post by the Secretary General of the BSEC Permanent International Secretariat Michael Christides.

"We are among the founding members of the organization and over the years we have always worked to deepen cooperation in all areas," Angelkova said at the conference.