Tag: UNWTO

As the United Nations specialized agency leads the restart of global tourism following the unprecedented crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, three virtual events brought together voices from across the sector at the leading trade fair. Against a backdrop of ongoing uncertainty, UNWTO outlined a positive narrative for tourism, stressing its historic ability to lead from the front and adapt to new challenges. Less Waste, More Opportunity On the opening day of ITB Berlin Now, UNWTO ensured sustainability was high on the agenda, leading efforts to ensure the sector lives up to its responsibilities for planet as well as people. “Eliminate. Innovate. Circulate: ... Read more

UNWTO invited the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to contribute to the UNWTO Inclusive Recovery Guide, Issue 2: Cultural Tourism. This is the second set of guidelines relating to the socio-cultural impacts of COVID-19 issued by UNWTO and will continue to be revised, as the situation evolves. The publication draws on the insights and expertise of the two UN agencies to analyse the impact of the pandemic on their respective sectors. This includes how lost revenues are severely impacting communities, heritage sites, cultural events, spaces and institutions, while also weakening destinations’ competitiveness and market differentiation. The guidelines on ... Read more

Over the course of two days, a regional virtual workshop analyzed the importance of tourism data for supporting the sector in the present and helping tourism to restart in the Caribbean in a timely and sustainable manner. The workshop brought together around 130 participants from 23 States, including the leaders of National Tourism Administrations, National Statistical Offices, Central Banks, and Migration authorities. The high-level status of participants ensures that they will in turn spread UNWTO’s technical expertise within their own countries, empowering more tourism professionals with knowledge of how best to analyze and use data to guide decisions. Through the ... Read more

The competition, which was supported by the United Nations Innovation Network, attracted some 10,000 initial proposals. From these, the jury chose 25 winners from 18 countries, highlighting the array of tourism talent in every global region and its widespread ability to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Shortlisted finalists were judged according to criteria which included the potential of the startups to contribute to a specific Goal, their ability to be scaled-up and the maturity of both the product and the team behind it. The 25 winning startups, selected by a jury made up of leaders from across the tourism ... Read more

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the Kingdom of Morocco met to advance the organization of the 24th UNWTO General Assembly in October 2021, the first global high-level United Nations event to be held since the beginning of the pandemic. Led by the Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, a delegation from UNWTO has concluded an official visit to Morocco to discuss the programme, calendar, and facilities to be prepared for this statutory meeting that will focus on Education and Youth, Rural Development and Digital Innovation. The Minister of Tourism of Morocco, Nadia Fettah Alaoui, and her team accompanied the delegation during this three-day visit and expressed ... Read more

According to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, the collapse in international travel represents an estimated loss of USD 1.3 trillion in export revenues – more than 11 times the loss recorded during the 2009 global economic crisis. The crisis has put between 100 and 120 million direct tourism jobs at risk, many of them in small and medium-sized enterprises.  Due to the evolving nature of the pandemic, many countries are now reintroducing stricter travel restrictions. These include mandatory testing, quarantines, and in some cases a complete closure of borders, all weighing on the resumption of international travel. At the ... Read more

Saudi Arabia’s northwestern AlUla Governorate which hosted the 41st summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council on Tuesday, including top leaders from the GCC’s six member-nations: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. AlUla is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world, and it tells the story of human civilization. It was a meeting point for the civilizations of the Nile and Mesopotamian valleys and the eastern coast of the Mediterranean on the one hand, and the civilizations of the Arabian Peninsula, Northeast Africa, and East Asia on the other. AlUla is home to ... Read more

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has awarded its UNWTO.QUEST Certification to Fundació Mallorca Turisme. The award further advances UNWTO’s work to promote and recognize excellence and quality in destination management for the benefit of the whole of the sector. At the same time, it boosts competitiveness in Mallorca, one of Europe’s top destinations, and emphasizes the importance of placing sustainability at the heart of future growth. Fundació Mallorca Turisme, a UNWTO Affiliate Member, becomes the fourth DMO (Destination Management Organization) in the world and the first in Europe to receive the UNWTO.QUEST Certification. The international benchmark was created to enhance ... Read more

Not so good news for the international tourism scenario. The recent survey research conducted by UNWTO points out that the revival of International Tourism will not be possible until the last quarter of 2021 and could even get stretched to 2022. Mr. Suman Billa, Director, Technical Cooperation and Silk Route, UNWTO while revealing the summary of the study said “One exercise we have done is that we have experts from all geographies in the world to look at what the forecast is like, now 80% of these experts think that international travel will only recover in the third quarter of ... Read more

The cost of the restrictions on travel introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is there for all to see. Between January and May, the sudden and rapid fall in tourist arrivals cost an estimated $320 billion. That’s three times greater than the impact of the Great Recession of 2007-2009 on our sector – and this is just for the first five months of the year,UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili has said. The re-opening of borders to tourism is a welcome relief to millions who depend on our sector. But this alone is not enough, especially in view of recent announcements and ... Read more

The responsible restart of tourism is underway around the world as growing numbers of destinations ease COVID-19 related travel restrictions and adapt to the new reality. According to the latest analysis from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), 40% of all destinations worldwide have now eased the restrictions they placed on international tourism in response to COVID-19. The United Nations specialized agency for tourism has been monitoring global responses to the pandemic from the start of the crisis. This latest outlook, recorded on 19 July, is up from 22% of destinations that had eased restrictions on travel by 15 June and the 3% ... Read more

Governments have a duty to put the wellbeing of their citizens first. At the same time, they also have a responsibility to protect livelihoods and businesses, says World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) secretary Zurab Pololikashvili. This goes hand-in-hand with a responsibility to preserve the spirit of international solidarity that has characterized our response to this shared crisis, a response that has included international institutions, the civil society at large and individual citizens. Again and again, the pandemic puts us to the test and proves that we are stronger if we act together and not in isolation. Unilateral actions can cause confusion and produce ... Read more

Over the past month, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) was able to hold virtual meetings of its five regional commissions to share responses to the challenge of COVID-19 and their plans for the restart of tourism in the wake of the pandemic. The annual series of meetings got underway with the regional commission for Africa, followed by meetings of the regional commissions for the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific and finally the Middle East region. UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said, “The meetings of the UNWTO regional commissions have shown the universal determination to restart tourism, and to do so ... Read more

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has appointed two new special ambassadors as it leads the restart of the sector across Europe. UNWTO has named renowned fashion designer Giorgio Armani and celebrated chef Gino Sorbillo as its latest special ambassadors for tourism. In their new roles, both the special ambassadors will draw on their status and influence to promote the work of the United Nations specialized agency for responsible and sustainable tourism. As leaders in gastronomy and fashion, they represent two of Italy’s biggest economic sectors and two of the industries that contribute to making the country a global tourism leader. ... Read more

Recovery and resilience were the central themes as the members of the World Tourism Organization’s Regional Commission for Africa (CAF) met to reflect today’s extraordinary circumstances. The meeting held virtually, brought together ministers of tourism from across the region with representatives of the African Union, the West African Monetary Union and even from the private sector, to plot a united course towards a stronger and better tourism industry. The meeting enjoyed the virtual presence of 140 participants from 30 countries, including 24 Ministers of Tourism. They were joined by representatives of 10 international organizations and by members of the UNWTO ... Read more