Around 200 Municipal Police (Polícia Municipal-PM) officers will receive training in the fields of local tourist information and English. As part of the first session of the "Formação + Próxima" programme, the first 50 officers received, in a theoretical/practical component and using interactive dynamics, information about the city, complemented with guided tours aboard a sightseeing bus. This way, they were able to perceive in loco contents addressed in the classroom. Another eight training sessions will follow in this project developed in partnership with the Escola de Hotelaria e Turismo do Porto [School of Hospitality and Tourism of Porto] and with the cooperation of various municipal services.


For the Councillor for Tourism and Internationalisation, "a more sustainable and competitive destination undoubtedly involves the training and development of its human resources, a principle already defended in the Destination's Sustainability Vision". "It is the people, in this case the Municipal Police Officers, who continue to make a difference in their service and who have an impact in the quality of the experience of those who visit us", added Catarina Santos Cunha, who attended the inaugural session, in a classroom, and who joined the group on a personalised tour aboard a sightseeing bus.


This programme, developed in partnership with the Escola de Hotelaria e Turismo do Porto, is added to others that the Municipality of Porto is developing, such as the "Confiança Porto" [Trust Porto] Programme, which began by recognising good practices in Tourist Accommodation and which, has recently been extended to tourist walking tours. "We intend to deepen the level of hospitality that is intrinsic to us, boost the qualification and training of professionals and police officers, not only in the tourism sector, but in other fields that are directly related to tourism", stressed the Councillor for Tourism.


"We are all promoters of the city's image"

The training programmes are "bespoke", in order to promote the training of workers from different municipal services, who interact with the tourism sector or who, in some way, are in contact with visitors. In a first stage, Municipal Police Officers will be the first to be trained, considering their proximity to tourists and their contribution to the image of a safe and hospitable destination.


"We are all promoters of the city's image", acknowledges the commander of the Municipal Police, so "it makes perfect sense that the officers are involved in this training". "It is an added value for the Municipal Police, since we are better trained to give a better response to those who visit us. Let us not forget that, many times, it is the police officers that tourists turn to, to ask a question, point out something unusual, ask for advice or information", says António Leitão da Silva.


The training is accompanied by a booklet, to simplify and help the officers’ interaction, as well as a pack, which contains, among other things, the Porto.CARD card, to increase the knowledge of the city's tourist offer.


"This training also helps our officers to make the city more cosmopolitan, more inclusive, to have added value and more sustainable tourism", concluded the PM commander.

Mais artigos

  • Câmara Municipal do Porto


    Last updated 2023-02-07