All five global regions are represented as the UNWTO SDGs Global Startup Competition reaches its final stages. The competition was launched to identify innovators whose ideas can advance tourism’s contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and attracted more than 10,000 participants from 138 countries. Now, the jury has narrowed the field down to a shortlist of just 60 finalists.

International arrivals fell by 72% over the first ten months of 2020, with restrictions on travel, low consumer confidence and a global struggle to contain the COVID-19 virus, all contributing to the worst year on record in the history of tourism.

UNWTO is moving ahead with plans to revise its strategic collaboration with the private sector. This follows up on the commitment made at 112th UNWTO Executive Council held in Tbilisi, Georgia, in September 2020.

The Global Tourism Crisis Committee has met for the last time in 2020, to continue advancing coordination and cooperation among all parts of the sector. The virtual meeting of the Committee, established by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) at the start of the pandemic, was hosted by Portugal ahead of its Presidency of the Council of the European Union, beginning in January. It was accompanied by in-person meetings of the highest political level between the UNWTO leadership, Prime Minister António Costa and the Ministers Foreign Affairs, Augusto Santos Silva.

Ensuring accessibility for tourists with specific access requirements can be a ‘game changer’ for destinations around the world as they look to bounce back from the impacts of the pandemic. A new set of  Inclusive Recovery Guides from the World Tourism Organization, produced in partnership with the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT), the ONCE Foundation of Spain and Travability from Australia, makes clear the importance of placing inclusivity at the centre of recovery plans and provides key recommendations for achieving this.

The number of destinations closed to international tourism has continued to fall. According to the eighth edition of the UNWTO Travel Restrictions Report, 70% of all global destinations have eased restrictions on travel introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In comparison, just one in four destinations continue to keep their borders completely closed to international tourists.