24th UNWTO General Assembly | Thematic Session
30 November - 3 December 2021, Madrid - Spain
On 2 December, the Thematic Session on “Building for the Future: Innovation, Education and Rural Development” will focus on how to harness the contribution of digitalization, MSMEs, education and policy to drive inclusive recovery through tourism and leave no one behind.
- Launch of the UNWTO Digital Futures Programme for SMEs created to accelerate economic recovery of the tourism sector by supporting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Travel Tech and Mobility Startups to unleash digital technologies to create jobs and enhance future resilience in the linkages of the tourism value chain post COVID-19. The goal of the Programme is to digitalize 20 million SMEs by 2024.
- Restarting tourism through Innovation & Education for future generations: This session will focus on how innovation can foster inclusion and support destinations resiliency and competitively and will include case studies presenting the 4 winning startups from the UNWTO Global Rural Tourism Startup Competition and 4 UNWTO Member States sharing insights on the impact of entrepreneurship on rural communities, offering insights and inspiration to stakeholders and destinations.
- 2021 Global UNWTO Students' League: This session will showcase how youth and the future tourism leaders of our sector are a powerful asset when creating sustainable solutions to build back better, as well give the audience an inspiring insight into their thoughts, through a debate with Ministers about the tourism, its future and their future within it. To get to this session, the winning Students of the 2021 Global UNWTO Students' League—from ages 11 to 29—have previously competed in the League to give their best sustainable ideas on how to address the Challenges set for this year: ‘Rural Development through Tourism’ and ‘Plastics Pollution’.
- Policies to Foster Tourism for Rural Development: This Ministerial session will focus on how to develop effective policies for rural development through tourism including whole of government approach, financing, national/local policy coordination and public-private partnerships.
- Official Announcement Ceremony of the Best Tourism Villages by UNWTO: villages recognized as “Best Tourism Villages by UNWTO” in the first edition of the initiative (pilot) will be announced.
Thematic Session - 24th session of the General Assembly
Building for the Future: Innovation, Education and Rural Development
2 December, 10:00-13:00, Auditorium
Opening :
- H.E. Mr. Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General, UNWTO
Ministerial Debate on Policies to Foster Tourism for Rural Development
Moderator: Sandra Carvao, Chief, Market Intelligence and Competitiveness, UNWTO
Advancing the contribution of tourism to rural development requires adequate policy frameworks and strategies. The ministerial discussion will aim to identify opportunities for shaping new policies and effective instruments to support inclusive and sustainable tourism development in rural areas including issues such as infrastructure, connectivity, value chain development and investment.
Presentation of the UNWTO Digital Futures Programme
- Natalia Bayona, Director, Innovation, Education & Investments Department, UNWTO
The UNWTO Digital Futures Programme for SMEs will be launched to accelerate economic recovery of the tourism sector by supporting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Travel Tech and Mobility Startups to unleash digital technologies to create jobs and enhance future resilience in the linkages of the tourism value chain post COVID-19.
The Digital Futures Programme focuses on 5 digital paths: Business Growth, Connectivity, ECommerce, Big Data & Analytics, and Payments & Security in collaboration with technology corporations such as: Amadeus, Airbnb, Mastercard, Facebook, CISCO, Telefónica, and Amazon Web Services. The Programme has the ambition to serve at least 1 million SMEs from 22 countries.
Ministerial and Entrepreneurial Roundtable on Innovation in Rural Tourism:
- Moderator: Natalia Bayona, Director, Innovation, Education & Investments Department, UNWTO
This roundtable will showcase the four winners from each of the categories of the UNWTO Global Rural Startup Competition alongside four Ministers from UNWTO Member States across regions sharing their views on how entrepreneurship is making an impact in rural communities in their regions, offering insights and inspiration to future entrepreneurs and destinations. Prior to the roundtable we will also see a video compilation of the winning projects.
Empowering Future Tourism Leaders – The UNWTO Students’ League
Award Ceremony of the 2021 Global UNWTO Students’ League
Interactive Panel discussion: “Youth Meets Ministers”
Moderator: Lucy Garner, Youth and Talent Development
Through UNWTO’s youth and talent development initiative – the UNWTO Students’ League – students from around the world compete to give the tourism sector their best ideas to solve the challenges of the sector on subjects strongly linked to the UN SDGs.
Through an online competition, this powerful 360º tool enables, on the one hand, public and private sector stakeholders to foster talent development and obtain innovative sustainable solutions for the challenges they face. And on the other hand, this tool bridges the gap between students’ education and training and the realities of our sector and therefore not only gives students more insight on our sector but also enables these young people to then enter the labour market as highly qualified and skilled professionals capable of adapting to any situation that may arise.
This year’s 2021 Global UNWTO Students’ League Challenges have been created for 4 age and study categories, from ages 11 to 29. The students were asked to create innovative sustainable solutions and give us their best solutions for Rural Development and Plastics Pollution.
This event at the General Assembly will not only showcase the Teams and their winning solutions but will also give the audience the opportunity to answer some of the concerns that these young future tourism professionals have and give us an inspiring insight into their opinions about the Tourism Sector, its future and their future within it.
Official Announcement Ceremony of the 2021 Best Tourism Villages by UNWTO
Closing remarks
For any enquiries about the session, please contact: Addaia Arizmendi aarizmendi@unwto.org
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Investments Strategy
Mission: Promote tourism through traditional and innovative investments services for the development of a competitive and sustainable economic growth.
Objective 1
Enhance access to finance and investments by connecting key tourism stakeholders into a high level global network.
Objective 2
Promote investments that boost economic growth, job creation and sustainability in tourism to public and private capital sources.
Objective 3
Develop sustainable investment mechanisms by partnering with key stakeholders to mobilize resources with a positive impact on tourism.
What we do
Maximizing Impact
Investments strategic focus
- Job Creation
Investments wider impact
- Multisector Impact
- Mobilization and demonstration effect
Investments commitment
- Job quality
- Climate change
- Women’s economic empowerment
- Skills and leadership
Reports & Relevant Documents:
Tourism Doing Business
Tourism Doing Business
The series of Tourism Doing Business reports is a tool reference for investors that provides valuable information on countries' investment climate as well as emerging investment opportunities. The publications promote redesigning an investment framework where education, innovation, and sustainability are the fundamental pillars.
Investment GuidelinesUN Tourism Investment Guidelines Series
UN Tourism Investment Guidelines Series
The multi-dimensional nature of the tourism sector, combined with the dynamics of the source of investment capital presents a complex picture for understanding and measuring tourism investments. At the same time, changing consumer behaviors and expectations, the advantage of technology, and the urgent need for greater sustainability challenge the current business models, and present new opportunities for investors interested in the tourism sector.
Enabling Frameworks for Tourism InvestmentTourism Investment Reports
Investments Readiness for
Green Finance Mechanisms
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive social and economic impact. Both developed and developing economies have been hit. And marginalized groups and the most vulnerable have been hit hardest of all. The restart of tourism will help kickstart recovery and growth. It is essential that the benefits this will bring are enjoyed widely and fairly.
UNWTO has therefore designated World Tourism Day 2021 as a day to focus on Tourism for Inclusive Growth. This is an opportunity to look beyond tourism statistics and acknowledge that, behind every number, there is a person. UNWTO invites its Member States, as well as non-members, sister UN agencies, businesses and individuals to celebrate tourism’s unique ability to ensure that nobody is left behind as the world begins to open up again and look to the future.
World Tourism Day, celebrated each year on 27 September, is the global observance day fostering awareness of tourism’s social, cultural, political and economic value and the contribution that the sector can make towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals.
Technical Note
Official Messages
The human desire to travel and explore is universal, which is why tourism must be open for everyone to enjoy.
So too must the many social and economic benefits that tourism brings be available to everybody.
World Tourism Day 2021 highlights the power of ‘Tourism for Inclusive Growth’.
Official Messages
Resources
Find everything you need to celebrate World Tourism Day, including social media images, graphics and logos
TRELLO UNWTO - WORLD TOURISM DAY 2021
Join World Tourism Day 2021!
? ? Submit the high-resolution photos and videos that best portray the power of tourism to generate growth for millions.
Join World Tourism Day 2021!World Tourism Day 2021 Events
Events by the global tourism community on the occasion of World Tourism Day 2021.
RFP/ICT/2021-02 “Contratación de asistencia técnica externa para el desarrollo e implantación de nuevos módulos del entorno financiero de la Organización Mundial del Turismo”
Type: Request of tender
Status: Awarded
Contractor: Siges Solutions S.L.U. (Lot A), Avanttic Consultoría Tecnológica S.L. (lot C and D)
Amount: Lot A: 136,261.12 EUR (plus VAT); Lot C: 72,418.50EUR (plus VAT); Lot D: 33,268.95 EUR (plus VAT)
RFP/ICT/2021-01 “Digitalización de los procesos de Recursos Humanos mediante la implantación de Oracle HCM Cloud en la Organización Mundial del Turismo”
Type: Request of tender
Status: Awarded
Date Contract: 2021-11-26
Contractor: ABAST SYSTEMS & SOLUTIONS, S.L
Amount: 109.400,00 (plus VAT)
RFP/PBST/2021-01 “Maquetación y diseño de publicaciones, revistas y folletos de la OMT”
Type: Request of tender
Status: Awarded
Date Contract: 2021-12-15
Contractor: Impacto Creativo de Comunicación, S.L.
- Carta de invitación
- Documento I - Datos de la licitación
- Documento II - Contrato y Condiciones Generales de Contratación
- Documento III - Términos de Referencia
- Documento IV - Anexos de presentación de la oferta técnica
- Documento V - Anexo de presentación de la oferta económica
- Documento VI - Brand Guidelines
- Documento VII - UNWTO Author Guidelines
- Documento VIII - Style Guidelines
- Preguntas y respuestas
Competitiveness
The Tourism Market Intelligence and Competitiveness Department works to provide knowledge and strategic guidance to support tourism destinations and the sector at large become more competitive and improve destination management through efficient policies and governance.
Market Intelligence
Market Intelligence
2018 marked the ninth consecutive year of sustained growth in international tourism. A total of 1.4 billion tourists travelled the world in 2018. Tourism generated US$1.7 trillion in worldwide exports in 2018.
Market IntelligencePolicy and Destination Management
Policy and Destination Management
UNWTO works to provide guidance and share good practices on policies and governance models aimed to effectively support the tourism sector at the different levels: national, regional and local.
Policy and Destination ManagementProduct Development
Product Development
As defined by UNWTO, a Tourism Product is "a combination of tangible and intangible elements, such as natural, cultural and man-made resources, attractions, facilities, services and activities around a specific center of interest which represents the core of the destination marketing mix and creates an overall visitor experience including emotional aspects for the potential customers. A tourism product is priced and sold through distribution channels and it has a life-cycle".
Product DevelopmentRFP/TECO/2021-03 “COVID-19 Tourism Recovery Technical Assistance in Dominican Republic”
Type: Request of tender
Status: Awarded
Date Contract: 2021-10-25
Contractor: Inmark Europa S.A + Atrevia Comunicación SLU
Amount: 176.692,00
RFP/TECO/2021-02 “Technical assistance to promote recovery of the tourism activity in the aftermath of the lockdown, regaining consumer confidence and building resilience in the tourism sector in the Republic of Maldives”
Type: Request of tender
Status: Awarded
Date Contract: 2021-10-13
Contractor: LLC Reformatics
Amount: 197.018,00