World Tourism organizaTionWorld Tourism organizaTionCommitted to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development GoalsCommitted to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals

Sustainability

Green economy

Stimulus measures

UNWTONewsUNWTONews

Tourism outlook

2010

www.UNWTO.org IssUe 1/2010

2010

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Cooperation

Unemployment

uncertainty

Energy prices

Tourism outlook

Sustainability

On Track for a

Rebound...page 05

Stimulus measuresLow interest rates

Green economy

Innovation

public-private partnership (PPP)

Moderate inflation

Pent-up demand

Magazine of the World Tourism Organization

Climate changeClimate change

COVER STORYThe world’s tourism industry will look back on 2009 as one of the toughest years in history.Although recovery seems to be on track, it is important to remain vigilant.

Taleb Rifai secretary-GeneralMaRcio favilla lucca de Paula, fRédéRic PieRReT, ZolTán SoMogyi executive Directors JoSé gaRcía blanch Director of AdministrationMaRcelo RiSi Media OfficerKaTe holMeS Journalistalla PeReSSolova Fairs and Communications Assistance OfficerbeaTRiZ coRdeRo del val Design and Layout

recycleWhen you have finished withthis magazine please recycle it

UNWTO News provides information on the work of the World Tourism Organi-zation (UNWTO),

It is produced in english, French and spanish, and is available in electronic form at www.UNWTO.org.

Articles may be reproduced, provided they are accompanied by the words “Re-printed from UNWTO News“, along with the date and issue.

ISSN 1014 - 7276

World Tourism OrganizationCapitán Haya, 42 28020 Madrid, spain

Tel.: +34-91-567-8100,Fax:+34-91-571-3733comm@UNWTO.org,www.UNWTO.org

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development GoalsUNWTO.orgUNWTO NEWS 2009.2

On the RiseVIEWPOINT

shaping the Future of Tourism

New Management Team

UNWTO GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Travel & Tourism after Copenhagen

UNWTO calls on the Tourism Community to seal the Deal

CLIMATE ChANGE ANd TOURISM

UNWTO events 2010AGENdA

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Fitur 2010 sets the stage for Innovative Tourism InitiativesFAIRS

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UNWTO and spain heading towards the same Destination

The King of spain meets UNWTO secretary-General

UNWTO hOST COUNTRY

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On Track for a ReboundWORLd TOURISM BAROMETER

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Making the Case for Tourism at the 2009 Ministers’ summit

T20 to meet for First Time in south Africa

International summit on Tourism, sport and Mega events

2009 MINISTERS’ SUMMIT

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Tourism celebrates Diversity on WTD 2009WORLd TOURISM dAY

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2010 Tourism Forum looks beyond the economic CrisisdEBATING TOURISM

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UNWTO enters strategic Partnership with CNN InternationalMEdIA RELATIONS

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2010 is expected to be the year of the beginning of a clear global recovery with encouraging signs that the global economic downward trend which began in September 2008 may have started to bottom out.

With improving macroeconomic conditions, consumer confidence is expected to pick up speed again, and tourism is projected to react positively.

But while worldwide statistical averages might indicate an upswing, there are still a number of uncertainties. Rising unemployment and increasing public deficits will translate into fiscal pressure, with varying results between re-gions and destinations.

Against this complex backdrop, one thing is clear: we cannot go back to business as usual.

Global leaders must seize the spirit which united the world community in confronting these challenges and take the opportunity to craft a truly sus-tainable future. Otherwise we will again fall into the trap which produced the crisis out of which we are slowly emerging, but with an immensely added burden, the threat of a climate collapse.

UNWTO is committed to addressing the economic and environmental chal-lenges in the transformation to the Green Economy. Our Roadmap for Re-covery, which was endorsed by our 18th General Assembly in October 2009, is part of this framework and will serve as a template for action and support

to our Members.

Taleb Rifai

Secretary-General

The World Tourism Organization, a United Nations specialized agency, is the leading international

organization with the decisive and central role in world tourism. It serves as a global forum for

tourism policy issues and a practical source of tourism know-how. Its membership includes 154

countries, seven territories and more than 400 Affiliate Members representing local governments,

tourism associations and private enterprise.

On the RiseVIEWPOINT |

UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009 3UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals

“Our Roadmap for Recovery, which was endorsed by our 18th General

Assembly in October 2009...will serve as a template for action and support to

our Members”

.

4 UNWTO.orgUNWTO NeWs 2009 UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals

ThiS hAS BEEN ThE MESSAGE UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, has been taking to top Spanish politicians as UNWTO continues to strengthen its already close relationship with its host country Spain.

Mr. Rifai met with the Prime Minister of Spain, José Luis Ro-dríguez Zapatero, at the Moncloa Palace in Madrid (November 2009), where both agreed to continue collaborating closely to promote and support the tourism industry. Prime Minister Zapatero was also in fa-vour of a more visible presence of the United Nations in Spain, where UNWTO is its lead entity as the only UN specialised agency with its permanent headquarters in the country.

The Spanish leader and Mr. Rifai identified the six-month Spanish Presidency of the European Union, beginning 1 January, as an opportunity to highlight the value of tourism and its contribution to the economy, job creation and the mitigation of climate change. At the same time, the Spanish Presidency is committed to supporting the UN-WTO Roadmap for Recovery (see page) to drive the tourism agenda in the Mediterranean and across Europe.

Mr. Rifai also met with Patxi López ( October 2009 ), the Presi-dent of the autonomous government of the Basque Country, on a trip to the north of Spain. There he welcomed initiatives from the Basque Country to promote itself as a tourist destination in line with UNWTO calls for sustainable, responsible and accessible tourism.

Spain has long been aware of the benefits of tourism as

a driver of jobs, economic growth and development. As one of the world’s top tourism destinations, Spain is currently the second world-wide earner from tourism and the first in Europe. Tourism is therefore a leading industry in the country and one the country is eager to support and promote.

UNWTO and Spain heading towards the same destination

‘‘Working in collaboration with UNWTO and capitalizing on the Spanish Presidency of the EU, Spain can and must continue advancing the sustainable development of the

travel and tourism industry

2009 saw the first ever official visit of the head of UNWTO to the Spanish Royal Palace when his Majesty, King Juan Carlos i, met with UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai. During his audience with the King (December 2009), Taleb Rifai outlined the economic prospects of tourism in Spain to-gether with the Spanish Secretary of State for Tourism, Joan Mesqui-da Ferrando.

The King of Spain meets UNWTO Secretary-General

All parties agreed that tour-ism has a special relevance in Spain and that the six-month Spanish Presidency of the European Union presented an important opportu-nity to strengthen tourism in the country. There was also strong en-couragement for collaboration with the ‘Union for the Mediterranean’, the framework for multilateral re-lations between the EU and the Mediterranean non-EU countries, in the support of sustainable tour-ism across the region.

The meeting typifies the close relations and long history of coop-eration between UNWTO and its host country Spain. UNWTO looks forward to collaborating with Spain during its EU Presidency and over the coming years in the ongoing promotion of travel and tourism.

.

Spain, UNWTO member since 1975

International tourist arrivals million2006

2007

2008

58,0

58,7

57,2

International tourism revenues US$ - billions2006

2007

2008

58,0

58,7

57,2

International tourism destination ranking

Sources: Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade and UNWTO

2006

2007

2008

by arrivals by revenues

2nd

2nd

3rd

2nd

2nd

2nd

With a thriving tourism sector and the headquarters of the United Nations World Tourism Organization in its capital, spain’s Presidency of the european Union (eU) is a unique opportunity for the country to take on a global leadership role in the promotion of sustainable tourism.

”

ThERE iS NO DOUBT that the world’s tourism industry will look back on 2009 as one of the toughest years in history. On top of a series of political tensions and natural disasters, the in-dustry had to face the fall-out from the econom-ic crisis and the A (h1N1) influenza pandemic. While the industry has been tested often in the past, never has it had to contend with so many challenging issues at the same time.

LAsT qUARTeR OF 2009 sees ReTURN TO GROWTH IN INTeRNATIONAL TOURIsM

international tourist arrivals fell by 4% in 2009 but the 2% upswing in the last quarter of the year indicates a change of trend after the drop of 10%, 7% and 2% in the first three quarters respectively. Asia and the Pacific and the Middle East led the recovery with growth already posi-tive in both regions in the second half of 2009, according to the January edition of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer.

“The figures of recent months suggest that recovery is underway, and even somewhat earlier and at a stronger pace than initially ex-pected”, said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.

Receipts for 2009 are estimated to have decreased by 6% given that as in previous cri-ses, consumers tended to trade down, travel closer to home or for lesser time. in several destinations domestic tourism endured the cri-sis better and even grew significantly, often with the support of specific government measures. This was the case among many other countries, of Brazil, China and Spain, where the domestic market, representing a large share of the total, contributed to partially offsetting the decline in international tourism.

2010 – A “yeAR OF TRANsFORMATION”

Overall economic indicators also suggest an increasingly solid basis to regain optimism. The international Monetary Fund (iMF) stated at the beginning of this year that the global recovery is occurring “significantly” faster than expected.

Against this backdrop UNWTO fore-casts a growth in international tourist arrivals of between 3% and 4% in 2010. By region, Asia is expected to continue showing the strongest re-bound, while Europe and the Americas are likely to recover at a more moderate pace. Growth is

Decline rates of international arrivals have eased in recent months•

2009 results are better than expected totalling 880 million international arrivals•

economic indicators have improved in some major source markets•

In 2010 UNWTO forecasts international arrivals to grow between 3% and 4%•

International Tourism Outlook 2010:

ON TRaCk fOR a REbOUNd

expected to return at a stronger pace also to the Middle East while Africa will continue its positive trend ben-efiting from the extra boost provided by the 2010 FiFA World Cup in South Africa.

As a result, 2010 while still being a demanding year, promises to be a ‘year of transformation’.

On the nega-tive side, unemployment is expected to con-tinue rising with economic growth still fragile in major source markets, especially in Europe and the USA. Furthermore, oil prices remain volatile and taxes might rise to balance public accounts. Non-economic challenges also continue. On the one hand, security threats and the potential of increased related hassle and costs for travellers remain. On the other, experience from previ-ous pandemics shows that the evolution of the h1N1 influenza still poses uncertainty.

While these factors will do little to in-crease tourism demand, consumer confidence, so crucial for tourism growth, seems to be pick-ing up, while interest rates and inflation are ex-pected to remain low, easing perspectives for tourism businesses and bringing some relief to households.

in this context, there is scope for a revival among source markets which were hard hit in 2009 such as the Russian Federa-tion or the UK. This could be further leveraged by the fact that a slump is generally followed by a rebound due to pent-up demand. Destinations are expected to actively factor in this opportu-nity, together with stakeholders maintaining the momentum of the spirit of cooperation and part-nership bred by the crisis.

The tourism sector is starting 2010 on a stronger basis, having proven flexible in dealing with rapid shifts in demand and volatile market conditions. On a long term perspective, the cri-sis provided an opportunity to address underly-

The figures of recent months suggest that recovery is under-way, and even somewhat earlier and at a stronger pace than initially expected

ing structural weaknesses and decision takers can seize the opportunity to implement strate-gies fostering sustainable development and the transformation to the Green Economy.

sTAyING ALeRT

Although recovery seems to be on track, it is im-portant to remain vigilant. “Many countries were quick in reacting to the crisis and actively im-plemented measures to mitigate its impact and stimulate recovery. Although we expect growth to return in 2010, a premature withdrawal of these stimulus measures and the temptation to impose extra taxes may jeopardize the pace of rebound in tourism. As highlighted in the UNWTO Roadmap for Recovery (see page 9),

the sector can make a vital contribution to eco-nomic recovery, particularly as a primary vehicle for job creation and the transformation to the Green Economy. But to do so we need serious global policies that are supportive of tourism”, said Mr. Rifai.

For the latest trends in international tourism:

UNWTO World Tourism Barometer:

http://www.UNWTO.org/facts/eng/barometer.htm

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009 5.

Souce: World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)©

WhiLE ONLy A FiRST STEP, the results are encouraging, particularly if one considers that 192 countries were at the table, with different short-term concerns and objectives, although with the highly valuable common denominator of wanting to stop climate change. indeed, as the largest gathering of heads of state and government in the history of the UN, the conference marked a turning point in how the world confronts climate change, an issue with profound implications for the health and prosperity of all people.

A new political dynamic has become apparent, revealing invested concern from world leaders and calls for real and measurable action. Cli-mate change is now firmly entrenched in the global agenda and critical negotiations for a greenhouse gas emissions framework will continue to demonstrate that climate policy must be more than just symbolic.

Given tourism’s position at the frontline of the climate change is-sue, as well as its global economic and social value, the industry has an important place in this new reality.

TRAveL & TOURIsM AND THe CLIMATe IMPeRATIve

The sustainability of the environment and that of the travel and tourism in-dustry are mutually dependent. The industry is highly-climate sensitive with the effects of a changing climate having considerable impacts on tourism destinations. however, travel and tourism also recognises its responsibility in accounting for around five per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions, deriving mainly from air travel.

The Caribbean, Small island Developing States, Southeast Asia and Africa are the tourism regions thought to be most at risk from cli-mate change. These regions are also the ones most dependent on the economic contribution of tourism which has long been a vital contributor to the global economy. indeed, the industry has proved to be one of the most effective ways of redistributing wealth from richer to poorer countries and is also a catalyst for gender equality, cultural preservation and nature conservation.

The dilemma is therefore how to tackle climate change while pre-serving the economic and social benefits of tourism.

it is sustainable tourism that can effectively respond to the glo-bal climate imperative, mitigating and adapting to climate change while contributing through finance and technology exchange to a green travel culture and sustainable growth in developing countries.

With its potential for green job and environmentally-friendly infra-structure creation, sustainable tourism is well-placed to play a leading role in the transformation to the Green Economy, while simultaneously contrib-uting to the successful advancement of the UN Millennium Development Goals. indeed, the industry has often acted ahead of regulation to adopt and disseminate standards and best practices on greenhouse gas (GhG) mitigation and adaptation. incentives and policies, as well as global sec-toral approaches, supported by a ‘level playing field’ void of restrictions to trade, will allow the industry to efficiently pursue the scale of change for progressive transformation to occur. Only then can the true potential of the industry be unlocked.

ONe vOICe FOR TRAveL & TOURIsM

Against this background the travel and tourism industry must unite ef-forts and speak with one voice to promote sustainable tourism’s role in the climate response. By nature fragmented and represented worldwide to a considerable extent by small and medium sized enterprises, the sector needs to present a united front on critical issues that threaten the industry and the economies which it supports.

This challenge set the framework for the joint side-event at COP15 by UNWTO and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), ‘Addressing the Challenges of Climate Change – Perspectives from the Travel & Tourism Sector’.

The event brought together tourism leaders from the public and private sector to voice the important steps taken by the industry towards responsible growth and development. Examples of best practice were presented in order to communicate to policy-makers travel and tourism’s proactive approach to carbon emissions mitigation and adaptation.

“Joining forces for tourism in Copenhagen is a response to one of

Travel & Tourism after Copenhagen

‘fROM davOS TO COPENhaGEN aNd bEyONd: advaNCING TOURISM’S RESPONSE TO ClIMaTE ChaNGE’ is the back-ground paper presented at the COP 15 UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, denmark.

The paper takes stock of the progress achieved in this field, including the 2003 djerba declaration, the 2007 davos declaration, international capacity build-ing and awareness raising efforts lead by UNWTO over

the years, as well as the response of Governments and the private sector which followed.

Download ‘From Davos to Copenhagen and Beyond: Advancing Tourism’s Response to Climate Change’ http://www.UNWTO.org/pdf/From_Davos_toCopenhagen_beyond_UNWTOPaper_electronicversion.pdf

Taking Stock of Climate Change Response

following months of talks and weeks of fierce negotiations, the ‘Copenhagen accord’ emerged from the 2009 Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15) as the first real step to fighting climate change in the 21st century. This political deal to cap temperature rise, reduce emissions and raise finance is expected to be followed by an agreement with legally-binding provisions later this year, giving national governments enough time to ratify the agree-ment before the kyoto protocol expires in 2012.

6 UNWTO.orgUNWTO NeWs 2009 UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals.

the key recommendations of the UNWTO Roadmap for Recovery, high-lighting the importance of building a strong public-private dialogue and boosting strong partnerships. The great cross-cutting impact of our indus-try makes it necessary to establish and maintain this close collaboration,” said UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai. “i am confident that together we will contribute to a better positioning of travel and tourism in the global climate response agenda”, he added.

FROM DAvOs TO COPeNHAGeN AND BeyOND While the agreement reached in Copenhagen sets the foundation upon which a resilient Green Economy can be developed, individuals and busi-nesses also need a sound framework to make informed investment deci-sions and work to develop sustainable solutions. Over the past decade, UNWTO has been increasingly aware of its responsibility to provide this framework and guide its members as they work towards a greener in-dustry.

The 2007 UNWTO Davos Process included firm recommenda-tions and a clear commitment for action to respond to the climate change challenge including the urgent adoption of a range of sustainable tourism policies. in the same year, UNWTO launched a ‘Climate and Tourism Ex-change Service’ to enable tourism stakeholders access to research and data and continued to actively engage with the public and private sectors in taking concerted action against climate change. in the build-up to Co-penhagen, UNWTO markedly increased its efforts on the climate change and tourism issue, launching the hotel Energy Solutions Project (see page 13) and promoting the ‘Seal the Deal!’ campaign.

Following Copenhagen, UNWTO will continue to lead initiatives in the tourism sector consistent with UN-led climate negotiations. As an in-dustry dependent on a sustainable future, there is much at stake for travel and tourism during climate negotiations and UNWTO will carefully follow political developments, working hard to raise awareness of the important role of tourism and ensuring that mitigation policies do not reduce its ca-pacity to alleviate poverty. http://www.UNWTO.org/climate

UNWTO joined all the other United Nations agencies assembled in Copenhagen to send a clear message that the UN is both “working and delivering as one” on climate change.

THe COMMITMeNT, which is being respected by all agencies in a highly coordinated manner, was stressed by the UN secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, at the UN high-level interactive debate on the role of the UN system in addressing climate change. UNWTO secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, represented the travel and tourism industry at the session held on 16 December.

The high-level interactive debate was attended by del-egates to the UN Climate Change summit, observers and the pub-lic at large.

Under the leadership of the UN secretary-General, the UN Chief executives Board for Coordination (CeB) has under-taken an extensive exercise in coordination to align the strengths, capacities and expertise of the organizations of the UN system to deliver as one in meeting the challenge of climate change.

The UN system is determined to provide coherent and consistent support to the efforts of Member states at national, re-gional and global levels in addressing climate change through action on adaptation, capacity building, technology transfer, Re-ducing emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (ReDD) and other areas.

Further to its role within the UN system, UNWTO has em-braced the challenge of responding to climate change by estab-lishing collaborative partnerships, raising awareness, developing guidance and providing support to its members and the travel and tourism industry.

The United Nations System delivering as one on Climate Change

ThE UN-LED “SEAL ThE DEAL!” campaign aimed to galvanize political will and public support for a fair, balanced and effective global agree-ment in Copenhagen. UNWTO took the campaign around the world to its key international tourism events such as World Tourism Day in Ghana, the UNWTO General Assembly in Kazakhstan, a special event with the Madrid Tourism Board in the Spanish capital and the Ministers’ Summit in London. Tourism leaders and stakeholders at these events stamped their support for action onto huge canvasses which travelled across three continents, arriving into Copenhagen as an expression of tourism’s support for tackling the climate chal-lenge.

Recognising climate change as one of the central challeng-es of our age, UNWTO has been a vocal supporter of an inclusive and ambitious global agreement in Copenhagen. its stance reflects UNWTO’s strong commitment to a greener and cleaner tourism in-dustry. As a result of the strong interrelationship between climate change and tourism, UNWTO has been leading initiatives in the tour-ism sector to tackle climate change since the turn of the century. in particular, the UNWTO Davos Process initiated in 2007 acknowl-edges the need for a long-term strategy for the sector to reduce its greenhouse gases and calls for financial and technological support for developing countries to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of cli-mate change. Developing countries tend to be the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change yet contribute to it least, a factor UNWTO has always held firmly in mind and one of the key principles of the Seal the Deal! campaign.

UNWTO calls on the Tourism Community to

As the clock ticked down to the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, UNWTO joined the global chorus for a more sustainable future with a call on the tourism community to “Seal the Deal!”

SEal ThE dEal!

Climate Change Response – “Seal the Deal!” campaign at Ghana, Kazakhstan, Madrid and London

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009 7.

iN ThE FACE OF ThESE ChALLENGES, Tourism Ministers and senior officials from national tourism organizations, as well as public, private and academic Affiliate Mem-bers, took significant steps to demonstrate and clarify the role of tourism in global development and the eco-nomic and environmental agenda.

TOURIsM As A DRIveR OF eCONOMIC ReCOveRy AND sUsTAINABLe DeveLOPMeNT

COMiNG TOGEThER in Astana in the midst of a global economic downturn, Tourism Ministers from around the world unanimously endorsed the UNWTO ‘Road-map for Recovery’ presented to the Assembly. Tourism makes an indisputable contribution to local economies, job creation and sustainable development, and can play a lead role in the transformation to the Green Economy, although it has not enjoyed the recognition it deserves at the tables of policymakers and world leaders. The Roadmap is a set of concrete guidelines aimed at sup-porting not only the sector in its efforts to overcome the economic crisis, but the global economy as a whole. Through its spill-over effect onto other sectors of the economy, the tourism industry can be the motor behind economic recovery, especially if mainstreamed into eco-nomic stimulus packages. The Roadmap is thus a call from UNWTO and its Members to include tourism as a key strategic component of national economic plan-ning.

Participants also expressed widespread con-cern at unnecessary burdens that are being placed on travel at a time when the industry is struggling to maintain demand. in particular, the Assembly opposed the UK Air Passenger Duty, which raises taxes on pas-sengers flying from British airports. it is feared that this tax will have severe negative effects on those countries most dependent on tourism, usually the world’s poorest countries. in a show of support to the industry and in

recognition of its role in development, a Declaration on the Facilitation of Tourist Travel was adopted. The Dec-laration encourages governments to eliminate or reduce barriers to travel in order to optimise its contribution to economic growth and sustainable development.

ReINFORCING UNWTO’s ROLe

ThE GENERAL ASSEMBLy was also the stage for insti-tutional changes within UNWTO itself. The Assembly unanimously elected Taleb Rifai as Secretary-General for the period 2010-2013. Mr. Rifai has served as Secretary-General ad interim since March 2009 and had previously been Deputy Secretary-General since February 2006. Mr. Rifai expressed his commitment to work with his new management team for greater transparency and ac-countability, and for the Organization to become more programme-based and results-oriented, as reflected in his Management Strategy presented to the Assembly.

This progressive reform process will not only provide enhanced leadership to the travel and tourism sector but also allow UNWTO to continue to support and service its Members as they work to promote responsible and sustainable tourism. UNWTO continued to consoli-date its membership. The Republic of Vanuatu became the newest Full Member, and 89 new private and public sector Affiliate Members also joined the UNWTO family.

PROMOTING TOURIsM THROUGH THe UN sysTeM

AS ThE UN SPECiALiSED AGENCy for tourism, UNWTO is committed to ensuring that actions taken by the indus-try are in line with, and provide added benefit to, efforts to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals and a sustainable global future. Tourism has an important part to play in the global development and climate agenda and has worked over the years to collaborate with other UN agencies in their respective fields to further this role.

The General Assembly called for a comprehen-sive global agreement at the UN Climate Change Confer-ence in Copenhagen and endorsed the UN-led “Seal the Deal!” campaign which aims to galvanize support for an accord (see page 7). Along similar lines, the Assembly reviewed and endorsed action taken by UNWTO in the framework of the UN system to increase tourism’s pre-paredness to respond to the h1N1 pandemic. UNWTO has given strong support to the World health Organiza-tion’s efforts to issue case management guidelines and has played an active part in top-level coordination efforts with the UN System influenza Coordinator (UNSiC).

The UNWTO, as the leading global tourism or-ganization, is well placed to provide leadership and sup-port to its Members as they navigate the difficulties of our age. The major challenge remains to press for the rec-

Shaping the future of TourismUNWTO GENERal aSSEMbly

The General Assembly is the

principal gathering of UNWTO.

It meets every two years to

approve the budget and pro-

gramme of work and to debate

topics of vital importance to the

tourism sector. Every four years

it elects a Secretary-General.

The General Assembly is com-

posed of Full Members and

Associate Members. Affiliate

Members and representatives

of other international organiza-

tions participate as observers.

This 18th session of the

UNWTO General Assembly

was the first to have its own

dedicated website which will

serve as a template for future

Assemblies.

For more information on all the Assembly activities, as well as videos and the UNWTO Assembly Daily visit: http://www.UNWTO.org/ga

With international tourism facing its most pressing challenges in recent history – a global economic downturn, rising carbon emissions and an unpredictable influenza H1N1 pandemic – there was ample ground for debate at the 18th session of the UNWTO General Assembly held in Astana, Kazakhstan.

8 UNWTO.orgUNWTO NeWs 2009

GENERAL ASSEMBLy

5-8

Oct

ober

2009

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals.

UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009

Geoffrey Lipman (UK), Assistant Secretary-General Mr. lipman joined UNWTO in 2006 as assistant Secre-tary-General and Spokes-person. before joining the Organization he was Special advisor of the Secretary-General.

Eugenio Yunis (Chile) , director of Programme and CoordinationMr. yunis joined UNWTO in 1997, first as head of the Sustainable development of Tourism department and since 2007 as director for Programme and Coordina-tion.

ThE UNWTO ‘ROADMAP FOR RECOVERy’ is addressed to world leaders and decision makers as they seek to stim-ulate the economy, support developing countries and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable future. A set of strategic guidelines, the Roadmap sets out how the travel and tourism sector can recover from the global downturn, support global economic recovery and play a lead role in the Green Economy. The Roadmap was presented at the General Assembly and was approved as the central framework for future action. The support Members gave to the initiative since its inception, during its presentation and in the future will be key to its promotion and implementation. The next steps along the road to recovery will be to communicate the central messages of the Roadmap globally so that the sector can gain visibility and take full advantage of global policy initiatives.

The road ahead

9

ThE ROadMaP fOR RECOvERy

For more information on all the Assembly activities, as well as videos and the UNWTO Assembly Daily visit: http://www.UNWTO.org/ga

The Roadmap for Recovery brochure is available at:http://www.UNWTO.org/trc

As approved by the General Assembly in Kazajstan, three executive Directors have joined UNWTO as part of the Organization’s Management team.

ThESE ThREE hiGh-LEVEL POSTS substitute the positions of Deputy Secretary-General (previously held by Mr. Rifai), Assistant Secretary-General and Director of Programme

New Management Team

ognition of tourism as a contributor to job crea-tion, trade and development. Coming together from all four corners of the world, to meet at the geographical centre of Eurasia, the 2009 Gen-eral Assembly reinforced the role of tourism as a source of economic growth, reconfigured UNWTO to better convey this role and sup-ported the actions of the UN system to further support the Millennium Development Goals and climate change response.

Márcio Favilla Lucca de Paula (Brazil) as brazil’s first vice Minister of Tour-ism, Mr. favilla de Paula played a key role in the structuring of the first exclusive Ministry of Tourism in bra-zil. In this position he was actively involved in the development and implementation of the 1st National Tourism Plan where he worked to in-crease both tourism arrivals into the country as well as domestic tourism (2003-2007). Since 2007, Mr. favilla de Paula served as vice Minister of the Secretariat of Institutional Rela-tions of the Presidency of brazil.

Frédéric Pierret(France)before joining UNWTO, Mr. Pierret was the director of Tourism in the french Tourism administration (2005-2007). In this role, Mr. Pierret oversaw projects to create new standards for accommodation and tourism municipalities in france as well as designing new tools for destination promotion. from 2007, Mr. Pierret worked as an advisor for UNWTO and was especially involved in the design and implementation of the System of Measures for Excel-lence in destinations.

Zoltán Somogyi (hungary)before joining UNWTO Mr. Somogyi was hungarian ambassador to Mon-tenegro. his experience in interna-tional tourism includes work as a tourist guide or the post of General director of International Relations of hungary’s largest travel agency. This comprehensive experience led to Mr. Somogyi becoming the President of the hungarian Tourist Office in 2005 and the State Secretary for Tourism in 2006, where he made a valuable contribution to the UNWTO Global Code of Ethics.

and Coordination (both retired at the end of 2009). The Executive Directors will focus on Competitiveness, Sustai-nability and Partnerships.

Senior officials retiringat the end of 2009 two senior officials retired from UNWTO. both contributed to the consolidation of the Organization as the leading global tourism body and to establishing tourism as one of the leading global activi-ties, particularly promoting the potential to contribute to sustainable development.

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals .

10 UNWTO.orgUNWTO NeWs 2009 UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals

Making the Case for Tourism at the2009 Ministers’ SummitBringing together around 80 Tourism Ministers, as well as leaders from the tourism private sector, the UNWTO Ministers’ Summit at the World Travel Market in London presented an opportune moment to reflect on what have been the two most challenging years on record for the industry.

‘‘ Today we meet to debate

important questions. World

leaders are

working today as never

before. We should do the

same for a more responsi-

ble, competitive and

sustainable tourism sector

‘‘

CReATING THe CONDITIONs FOR sUsTAINABLe eCONOMIC GROWTH

While a global sense of cautious optimism for 2010 seems to be emerging, the economic climate is still far from sta-ble. The major challenge for governments is to create a favourable business environment for the industry, facilitat-ing, not burdening its growth. As a principal catalyst of job creation, government support for the industry will al-low it to contribute to a global and sustainable economic recovery.

in this context, Ministers called for stimulus pro-grammes supporting the industry to be kept in place. im-proved and intensified tourism marketing and promotion, as well as diversifying markets, were also seen as central to reacting to the changing consumer attitudes that have emerged from the downturn. At the same time, burdens such as travel taxes and complicated visa fees should be scrutinized objectively. in particular, the recently introduced UK Air Passenger Duty was at the centre of debates.

“This is a discriminatory tax, not an environmental tax but a tax on development which fails to understand the importance of tourism to developing countries. This deci-sion comes at the wrong time and sends the wrong signal, especially from a country that wants to contribute to global development”, said Mr. Rifai, echoing widespread concern by the attending Ministers, delegations and private sector representatives.

POsITIONING TOURIsM IN THe GLOBAL AGeNDA

Tourism’s role as not only a job provider and source of economic wealth and development, but also its spill over effects into other sectors such as construction and ag-riculture, is still not recognised at the global level. in this way, the travel and tourism community needs to continue in its efforts to see its economic role in the global agenda recognised.

The Ministers’ Summit welcomed UNWTO initia-tives to raise awareness of the potential of the tourism sec-tor for the current challenges of job creation, economic recovery and the climate change response. The UNWTO Roadmap for Recovery, a set of guidelines designed to see the industry through and beyond the economic crisis, was seen as a global framework for action and should be used by all public and private stakeholders (see page 9).

Ministers also applauded the T20, an initiative from UNWTO member South Africa that will gather the Ministers of Tourism of the G20 Nations in February 2010. With the rising influence of the G20 on world decision making, the initiative is an important step forward in achieving recogni-tion of tourism as a pillar of economic growth.

TRAveL AND TOURIsM INvesTeD IN THe CLIMATe CHANGe ResPONse

At the centre of debates surrounding the climate chal-lenge and the transformation to the Green Economy was the delicate balance between economic development and environmental protection. Small island states such as the Maldives are a case in point. Rising sea levels, caused by global warming, threaten to submerge the islands, effec-tively wiping the country off the map. Seen as a top con-tributor to carbon emissions and consequent temperature rises, there have been widespread calls for decreasing long-haul flights. yet it is precisely these flights and the international tourists they bring that the economy of the Maldives depends on.

ThREE CLEAR MESSAGES emerged from the

discussion panels:

• the travel and tourism industry needs supportive glo-bal policies to demonstrate its potential as a key driver of economic recovery;

• public and private tourism stakeholders must come

together to promote this message; and

• the industry is invested in the climate change re-

sponse.

UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, addressing the Ministers’ Summit

The Summit is an an-

nual event and is part of the

World Travel Market Minis-

ters’ Programme. It provides

the essential tourism leader-

ship review and sets the

direction for an economically

sustainable and ecologically

carbon neutral future. The

Summit is hosted by World

Travel Market at ExCeL in

London.

Broadcast mate-

rial, including interventions

and interviews, as well as

the executive summary of

the 3d Ministers’ Summit

“Roadmap for Recovery:

Sustainable tourism in

challenging times” are avail-

able at:http://www.UNWTO.org/wtm.php ?lang=E&ruta=summit1

MiNiSTERS’ SUMMiT

UNWTO Ministers’ Summit. Roadmap For Recovery: sustainable tourism in challenging times.Keynote Speech; Taleb Rifai, Secretary-General, UNWTO

.

The answer is therefore to use the current economic crisis as an opportunity to move towards a new economic framework, one that advances economic, social and climate goals simultane-ously. Economic growth and development does not have to come at the expense of the climate imperative.

The Green Economy recognises that the economic and ecological challenges we face are one and indivisible, as is the poverty imperative. Ministers called for a green economy ap-proach to be taken towards the tourism industry. One that would stop pointing the finger at the air transport sector and instead en-courage new green technology and improved route management. in this way, the climate challenge is addressed without depriving many of the world’s poorest countries of the important economic contribution of travel and tourism.

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals

ThE G20 iS iNCREASiNGLy the formative voice in the development of the global economic and financial system – which is why the tourism community must act to promote the mainstreaming of tourism into glo-bal economic decision-making.

Similarly, the UN system is already integrat-ing elements of this evolving development and hence positioning UNWTO to play a relevant role.

The initiative originated in Kazakhstan during the UNWTO General Assembly, when Tourism Minis-ters from 15 of the G20 countries met on the sidelines to discuss the important contribution travel and tour-ism can make to sustainable economic growth.

Following the informal gathering, South Africa offered to host the first meeting of the so called T20 (Tourism Ministers of the G20) from 22 to 24 February 2010 in Johannesburg, where a Ministerial Communi-qué is expected to be drawn up and delivered at the G20 Summit in Canada.

“As a member of the G20, South Africa be-lieves that travel and tourism must play an important

role in economic recovery and find a place in stimulus packages. Over time, our sector can be an important component in the transformation to the Green Econ-omy”, said South African Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk.

The message of the T20 is similar to that presented by UNWTO ahead of the G20 Summit in April in London. Tourism is an industry of economic growth, strengthens trade, encourages investment and creates jobs as well as having a strong multiplier effect on related sectors. it is also well positioned to move to a more sustainable economy based on green tourism and travel infrastructure.

“As the G20 deliberates and decides on the future of the global economic framework, its member states cannot afford to neglect travel and tourism’s role in both the short-term challenge of economic re-covery and the longer-term goals of adapting to and mitigating the effects of climate change and contrib-uting to poverty alleviation”, said UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai. “The T20 has UNWTO’s complete support and encouragement as it seeks to position tourism within this framework”, he added.

T20 to meet for first Timein South africa

“The economic and the ecological

challenges are only one and they are

poverty interrelated. The Roadmap is the blueprint to raise the

stakes of tourism in the national and international agendasGeoffrey Lipman former UNWTO Assistant Secretary-General

UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009 11

UNWTO AND ThE SOUTh AFRiCAN

Ministries of Tourism and Sport will co-host the first ‘international Sum-mit on Tourism, Sport and Mega Events’ from 24 to 26 February 2010 in Johannesburg. The Sum-mit will be held directly following the T20 Meeting and parallel to the annual Meetings Africa, Africa’s top business tourism exhibition, provid-ing a forum for tourism stakehold-ers to consider the impact of mega events related to sport, culture, exhibitions and entertainment from a tourism perspective.

Mega events represent unique opportunities to reap the benefits of international tourism both immediately and over the long-term. First, events such as the Olympic Games or a World Exhibi-tion provide unparalleled global exposure and massive multimedia opportunities for nation branding and export promotion. Second, in-vestment in infrastructure for such events contributes to job creation and poverty alleviation long after the event has come to an end and the tourists have departed.

The Summit is particularly timely given the proximity of the 2010 FiFA World Cup in South Africa, which will benefit not only the host nation but the whole of Southern Africa as fans take the opportunity to travel before, during and after the games.

International Summit on Tourism, Sport and Mega Events

A novel member-driven initiative is looking to obtain direct support for tourism from the 20 industrialized and developing economies that make up the G20 as well as the closely associated bodies.

‘‘

24-2

6 fe

bru

ary

2010

More information:http://www.UNWTO.org/sasummit.php?lang=E

More information:http://www.UNWTO.org/G20.php?lang=E

.

a precise monitoring of tourism flows, espe-cially at the regional level, will lead to more efficient destination management and the im-proved positioning of tourism. Measuring and analyzing tourism, can provide higher quality research to support tourism enterprises and public bodies as they seek to develop their tourism product in a sustainable and com-petitive manner.This was the central message at the 1st Inter-national Conference on the Measurement and Economic analysis of Regional Tourism in San Sebastian (Spain), 27-28 October. The Confer-ence is the first in a series of international

Understanding Tourism’s Impact at the Regional Level

Ibero-america

JANUARY 20-24

fitur International Tourism Trade fair (Madrid)

FEBRUARY 24-26

UNWTO/South africa International Summit on Tourism, Sport and Mega-events (Johannesburg, South africa)

T20 Ministerial Summit (Johannesburg, South africa)

MARCh 10-14

ITb Travel Trade Show (berlin, Germany)

APRIL 28-20

fifty-first meeting of the Commis-sion for Europe & Technical Seminar (Sofia, bulgaria)

MAY 10-12

Twenty-second joint meeting of the Commissions for East asia and the Pacific and for South asia & Technical Seminar (hanoi, vietnam)

JUNE 8-10

Thirty-fourth meeting of the Commis-sion for the Middle East & Technical Seminar (Sana’a, yemen)

JUNE 14-16Seventh International Tourism forum for Parliamentarians and local au-thorities (Puerto vallarta, Mexico)

JUNE 17-19

fifty-first meeting of the Commission for the americas & Technical Seminar (Caracas, venezuela)

JUNE 27-29

Executive Council, Eighty - seventh Session (Puerto Iguazu, argentina)

Cal

end

ar o

f Eve

nts

2010

gatherings designed and organized jointly by Spain’s Tourism administration and the In-ternational Network on Regional Economics, Mobility and Tourism (INRouTe).INRouTe, an initiative by UNWTO together with affiliate Members Centre for Coop-erative Research in Tourism (CICtourGUNE) and araldi, both based in Spain, is an expert knowledge-driven network that promotes a multidisciplinary research approach in tour-ism, encourages the exchange of information and best practices and facilitates learning and training opportunities.

The Ibero-American Community com-prises: Andorra, Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Chile, Do-minican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicara-gua, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú,Portugal,

Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela.

TOURISM as part of the Solution for

ThE REPORT DETAiLS how the historic growth in inter-national tourist arrivals in ibero-American countries, which peaked in 2007 worldwide with more than 900 million arrivals, came to a sudden halt in 2008 with the onset of the deepest economic recession in recent his-tory, only to be further aggravated by the h1N1 flu pan-demic. The ibero-American Community maintains an important place in global tourism, accounting for 15% of hotel rooms worldwide and 14% of international tourist arrivals. While tourist activity in the Americas is weather-ing the crisis better than in many other regions of the world, Spain and Portugal are clearly suffering the con-sequences of the downturn and the drop in consumer confidence.

in this progressively difficult environment, travel and tourism can be part of the solution, proving cru-cial for “economic recovery, job creation and the fight against poverty”, according to the report. it identifies the UNWTO Roadmap for Recovery as a framework for action for ibero-America to support the industry and mainstream tourism into ongoing actions to respond to the current crisis (see page 9). The report also encour-ages ibero-American states to follow recommendations contained in the ‘Study on supply and demand for the training of human resources in the tourism sector in Latin America’ undertaken by SEGiB and UNWTO.

UNWTO and SEGiB will continue working to-gether to measure and analyze the economic contribu-tion of tourism for ibero-America in these testing times and support its sustainable growth and development.

In today’s globalized economy, tourism has emerged as one of the best-placed indus-tries to ease the effects of the economic downturn in the countries of Ibero-America. This is one of the main conclusions of the fourth edition of Turismo en Iberoamerica, a joint publication produced by UNWTO and seGIB, the secretariat General of Ibero-American states. seGIB brings together the 22 nations of Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula (spain, Portugal and Andorra).

For more information download the latest Turismo en Iberoamerica at:

http://www.UNWTO.org/facts/pub.html

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development GoalsUNWTO.orgUNWTO NEWS 2009.12

http://www.UNWTO.org/statistics/

Ibero-america fitur2010 sets the Stage for Innovative Tourism InitiatvesIn our rapidly changing world, travel and tourism must move quickly to keep up with shifting consumer attitudes, new trends and technological innovations and global challenges such as the climate imperative and rising poverty levels. Throughout its history, UNWTO has endeav-oured to be at the forefront of these new realities, supporting its Members as they adapt to

changing international conditions.

Investoura joint intitiave for the promotion of tourism development in africa

RECOGNiZiNG ThE POTENTiAL of the African con-tinent as a destination for tourism investment, as well as the importance of this investment for socio-economic development and poverty alle-viation, UNWTO has joined together with FiTUR and Casa Africa to promote sustainable tourism development in Africa. More specifically, this joint initiative will result in the first edition of the Forum on Tourism Development in Africa, “iNVESTOUR”.

This forum seeks to mobilize Spanish tourism investment in Africa thus contributing to sustainable development across the continent. Travel and tourism investment is a primary vehicle for job creation, stimulating trade and advanc-ing long-term goals such as poverty alleviation and tackling climate change. This is particularly the case is the world’s poorer countries where investment in tourism also has direct positive ef-fects on other sectors of the economy.

Potential for tourism investment in Africa is high given the diversity of its regions ranging from safaris to cultural tourism and beach holi-days. Upcoming events such as the 2010 FiFA World Cup in South Africa and the rise in health tourism are also big investment opportunities for Spanish business. Moreover, despite a glo-bal economic downturn, Africa has continued to post good results throughout the year with a recorded growth of +4%. indeed, Africa has been the only world region that has not seen a decrease in arrivals during the first eight months of 2009 (see page 5).

Despite the enormous tourism potential in Africa, its positive growth during the worst

economic downturn in recent history, and the geographical proximity between Spain and Af-rica, Spanish investment in African tourism des-tinations has tended to be modest.

At iNVESTOUR, African destinations will have the opportunity to present their proposals to potential Spanish investors who might not be aware of the investment possibilities Africa can offer them. As a meeting point for promoting the development of this strategic sector, UNWTO is confident that iNVESTOUR will directly contrib-ute to Africa’s socio-economic development.

FItur Green 2010hotel Energy Solutions

AS ThE iNTRNATiONAL COMMUNiTy comes to-gether to tackle the challenges of climate change, the travel and tourism industry is also working hard to reduce its contributions to glo-bal carbon emissions. The hotel sector is the tourism industry’s largest drivers of employ-ment and economic revenue making it one of the most energy-intensive, emitting 21% of the total CO2 emissions from tourism. Against this background, UNWTO will be co-organizing with FiTUR and the Madrid Tourism Board, a special-ized forum, under the title “FiTUR GREEN”, to present and consider products designed to im-prove the energy efficiency and sustainability of the hotel sector.

The 1st hotel Energy Solutions con-ference (21 January), under the title “hotel En-ergy Solutions: Towards a more competitive industry”, will bring together Europe’s leading hotels and destinations who will present prac-tical examples of how they are already saving energy, becoming more competitive and reduc-ing greenhouse emissions through the use of renewable energy initiatives and technologies. Discussions will demonstrate the competitive advantage of investing in energy, the latest in-novations in energy management and present strategies for mobilizing destination authorities to support environmental sustainability.

hotel Energy Solutions is a European Commission co-funded initiative which brings together key organizations in the fields of tour-ism and energy technologies: UNWTO who is coordinating the project, the United Nations En-vironment Program, the international hotel and Restaurant Association, the European Renew-

able Energy Council and the French Environ-ment and Energy Management Agency. The ini-tiative has been designed to deliver information, technical support and training to help European Union hotels increase their energy efficiency and renewable energy usage.

Running parallel to the conference, FiTUR will host a special exhibition area dedi-cated to energy and tourism, centred exclusively on presenting energy technologies for the hotel sector (20-24 January). hoteliers will have the opportunity to meet directly with the experts to discover how a better energy management strategy can boost their business profits and re-duce their carbon footprint.

UNWTO is committed to working across the industry, both in the public and pri-vate domain, to advance a coherent response to climate and development imperatives.

Both FiTUR GREEN and iNVESTOUR will highlight the need for the sustainable devel-opment of travel and tourism, providing guide-lines and support from UNWTO for the future of the industry.

As one of the most important tour-ism trade shows on the circuit, FITUR (Madrid from 20-24 January 2010) is an ideal platform for UNWTO and its part-ners to present two innovative forums which will lead the tourism industry into the future: INvesTOUR and FITUR GReeN.

www.hotelenergysolutions.net

UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009 13UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals

More information about INVESTOUR:www.UNWTO.org/investour

.

UNWTO.orgUNWTO NEWS 2009

LAST yEAR WAS ThE 30Th ANNiVERSARy of World Tourism Day which is celebrated every year on 27 September in countries around the world. As the United Nations’ leading world tourism event, World Tourism Day works to foster awareness among the international community of the im-portance of tourism and its social, cultural, politi-cal and economic values.

Official World Tourism Day activities in Accra, Ghana, included a gastronomy fair, com-munication workshop, press conference and the annual UNWTO Think Tank.

UNWTO THINK TANK CONCLUsIONs

Leading public and private tourism stakehold-ers, UNWTO representatives and specialized media came together at the 2009 UNWTO Think Tank to debate tourism’s capacity to maintain and preserve diversity and foster international understanding in today’s ever more globalized world. The Think Tank was chaired by hon. Mrs. Juliana Azumah Mensah (M.P.), Minister of Tourism of Ghana and Mr. Taleb Rifai, UNWTO Secretary-General ad interim at the time.

Tourism: Responding to the Challenge of Climate ChangeWorld Tourism Day 2008 was hosted in Lima, Peru and focused on tourism sector’s constructive response to the challenge of climate change by increasing awareness of the Davos Declaration Process and encouraging its imple-mentation by all stakeholders.

Tourism Opens Doors for WomenIn 2007,World Tourism Day took place in Bentota, sri Lanka in support of UN’s 3rd Millennium Development Goal: Promoting gender equality and women empowerment.

Tourism enrichesCelebrations hosted by Portu-gal highlighted the recognition of tourism as one of the key ways to bring wealth and expe-rience from the richest to the poorest countries, particularly as it increasingly intersects with information technology, thus helping to achieve the Mil-lennium Development Goals.

Travel and transport: from the imaginary of Jules verne to the reality of the 21st centuryWTD 2005 celebrations in qa-tar underscored international travel becoming a normal part of everyday life and identified transport capacity as a critical factor in the development or expansion of any destination.

sport and tourism: two living forces for mutual understand-ing, culture and the develop-ment of societiesWTD 2004 in Malaysia focused on sport and tourism as two of the undisputed driving forces behind modern society. Both represent the positive aspects of globalization through their common objectives.

DIveRsITy Is AN eCONOMIC AsseT

Think Tank participants all agreed that diversity is a stimulus for tourism entrepreneurship and thereby an indispensible asset to alleviate pov-erty. Diversity drives tourism and tourism drives job creation, economic development and invest-ment in infrastructure. One of the main chal-lenges identified by the Think Tank was ensuring that these economic benefits are reinvested in fostering job opportunities and sustainable de-velopment projects in local communities. These communities are the custodians of cultural di-versity and should therefore reap the benefits of its social wealth.

DIveRsITy Is A BUILDING BLOCK OF INTeRNATIONAL UNDeRsTANDING

Travel and tourism is a people-to-people activity, bringing us closer to diverse peoples, building bridges among communities and strengthening ties between nations. At the same time, tour-ism is an educating force that broadens our opportunities for cultural exchange, promoting tolerance, understanding and peace. Diversity therefore has not only economic, but social sig-nificance.

14

Tourism celebrates diversity on World Tourism Day 2009Diversity has long been the driving force behind tourism which has in turn has become one of the largest sectors of employment worldwide, an engine for socio-economic development and a key player in international understanding.

DiversityCelebrating

Tourismw w w . U N W T O . o r g

sHOWING UNITy IN DIveRsITy IN THe FACe OF GLOBALIzATION

The Think Tank identified the many challenges represented by globalization including its ho-mogenising tendencies and shifting economic implications. Tourism destinations are also faced with a new media reality in which they have only a few fleeting moments to promote their tourism products.

The Think Tank called for stronger re-gional and interregional support to increase visitor numbers in these challenging times. Pan-Africanism was highlighted as an example of re-gional integration for global action. This spirit of unity through diversity must be maintained dur-ing the upcoming 2010 FiFA World Cup in South Africa. This event represents a unique opportu-nity for all of Africa to showcase its diversity to the world and reap the benefits of international tourism.

27 S

epte

mb

er20

09

Previous Celebrations

2008 2007 2006 2005 2004

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals.

The city of Accra was a fitting scene for the 2009 official cel-ebrations of World Tourism Day that took place around the theme, ‘Tourism: Celebrating Diversity’. A country rich in cultural, environ-mental, linguistic and religious diversity, Ghana exemplifies why diversity, the lifeblood of tourism, must be celebrated, preserved and enhanced.

The main purpose of World

Tourism Day (WTD) is to

promote awareness among

the international community of

the importance of tourism and

its social, cultural, political and

economic values.

WTD is to be commemo-

rated on 27 September each

year by appropriate events on

themes selected by the General

Assembly, on recommendation

of UNWTO’s Executive Council.

This date was chosen

to coincide with an important

milestone in world tourism: the

anniversary of the adoption of

the UNWTO Statutes on 27

September 1970.

Last year WTD commemo-

rated its 30th anniversary.

http://www.UNWTO.org/wtd

Tourism: a driving force for poverty alleviation, job creation and social harmonyWTD 2003 in Algeria expressed the will of UNWTO to fully support one of the key issues stated in the UN Millennium Development Goals – poverty alleviation.

ecotourism, the key to sustain-able developmentHosted by Costa Rica, WTD 2002 supported the UN General Assembly’s declaration of 2002 as International year of ecotourism. This unprec-edented designation reflected the growing recognition by the international community of the potential of tourism.

UNWTO.org UNWTO NeWs 2009 15

WTD

UNWTO and CNN’s Tourism Advertising Solutions and Knowledge Group (TASK) have joined forces to strengthen the travel and tourism industry through content sharing, cross promotion and collaboration on key industry initiatives. The partnership will enhance the capability of the two organiza-tions to provide unique expertise, intelligence and information to sector professionals during key industry events. in these challenging economic times, expert knowledge and clear communication are more important than ever for the success of tourism destinations.

Comprising a team of external experts in tourism and eco-nomic development, the Task Group works closely with CNN to support clients to create impactful tourism communications solutions. Now in its third year of global operations, the TASK Group assists more than 65 Ministries of Tourism and tourism industry leaders across the world with strategic advice to enhance their nation and brand building efforts and navigate crisis issues.

The partnership will see TASK support at key UNWTO member and general tourism sector initiatives, such as the UNWTO/South Africa international Summit on Tourism, Sport and Mega Events (24-26 February 2010), ongoing activi-ties including the promotion of the UNWTO Roadmap for Recovery or regular campaigns such as World Tourism Day (27 September).

More information on the TASK Group: http://www.cnnmediainfo.com/task/

UNWTO enters strategic Partnership with CNN International

“The travel and tourism industry continues to grow, employing hundreds of millions of people, contributing to the socio-economic development of the world’s poorest coun-tries. Yet, its future depends on the realisa-tion of its potential and its integration into the global economic and political agenda. This partnership provides the opportunity to maximize tourism’s benefits in a highly competitive market through the support of CNN Task Group’s destination marketing as an additional support element”UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai

2010Tourism &

Biodiversity

World Tourism Day

China

2003 2002

UNWTO: Committed to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals .

PhotoCompetition

Participate at

http://www.UNWTO.org/wtd/photocom-petition/en/photo_competition.php

RECENT GLOBAL ECONOMiC developments have led to cautious talk of “green shoots of recovery” and indica-tions of a slow climb out of the worst economic crisis in recent history. Predictions for economic recovery in 2010 come as a relief for the travel and tourism indus-try, which has seen a decline in demand and growth over the past two years. yet the next two years will prove just as decisive as the sector seeks to position itself strategically in the evolving post-crisis scenario.

Against this background, UNWTO and the Spanish Alliance for Excellency in Tourism, Exceltur, have come together to organize the 5th Tourism Lead-ership Forum (19 January 2010). Under the title “Tour-ism Recovery: Challenges and Prospects for 2010”, this high-level forum aims to throw some light on what 2010 holds for the tourism industry and provide guide-lines to speed up world tourism recovery in the light of the new political, economic and consumer realities. Economic recovery will come, and when it does it will be those sectors that have best prepared that will reap the benefits such as renewed credit and investment flows.

UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai said he was looking forward to working with Exceltur to or-ganize the Forum. Mr. Rifai said he expects the event to be “the most important in Europe and probably the world in the early part of 2010, from which many of the new keys for facing the future of the tourism at the international level will emerge”.

The Forum brings together leading figures in the sector, including senior tourism officials from some of the main inbound and outbound tourism countries in the world, financial experts and economists and the CEOs and presidents of leading international and Spanish tourism companies.

As the first major tourism gathering of 2010, the Forum will set the stage for a global discussion of changing competitive patterns in the industry and evolving consumer attitudes, and provides an unrivalled opportunity to define the future course of the sector. The Forum will consider the most advisable tourism policies, differentiated business strategies and public-private cooperation frameworks to facilitate the global recovery of the industry as quickly as possible.

The Forum will analyse competitive and envi-ronmental challenges for tourism in Spain, consider the economic prospects for the European tourism indus-try in 2010/11 and outline global policies for a more sustainable tourism future. The event will be held on the eve of Spanish Tourism Fair FiTUR and coincides with the start of Spain’s six-month presidency of the European Union, giving Spain a unique leadership role in raising the socioeconomic perception of tourism (see page 4).

More information:

http://vforo.exceltur.org/ing/index.php?zona=0

2010 TOURISM fORUM lOOkS bEyONd ThE ECONOMIC CRISIS

World Tourism organizaTionWorld Tourism organizaTionCommitted to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development GoalsCommitted to Tourism, Travel and the Millennium Development Goals