Middle East Members Prioritize Innovation and Investments as UN Tourism Regional Commission Meets for 50th Time

• Middle East
• 22 May 2024

UN Tourism’s Member States in the Middle East have looked to the future, coming together to focus on boosting investments into the sector and growing new products to build resilience and expand inclusivity.

The Regional Commission for the Middle East welcomed high-level delegations from 13 Member States, including eight Ministers of Tourism. Welcoming delegates, UN Tourism Secretary-General invited all Members to join him in celebrating the Golden Jubilee of the Commission, noting that, over the course of 50 meetings, they have worked together to grow tourism both in size and in impact right across the region.

Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili provided Members with an update on the Organization’s work since the Commission last met (Jordan, June 2023), with special attention to key priorities of tourism education, jobs and investments. Opening the meeting he said: “Now, we can confidently say that the Middle East is a true global tourism leader. Not just in terms of arrivals, but the region is influencing our sector’s development everywhere in the world. It is a hub of tourism innovation and education. And it is a leading investor, backing big ideas and ambitious projects with the power to transform tourism at every level.”

Now, we can confidently say that the Middle East is a true global tourism leader. Not just in terms of arrivals, but the region is influencing our sector’s development everywhere in the world

More diverse, more innovative tourism

Following the reports of the Secretary-General and the Regional Director for the Middle East, the focus switched to building a more diverse, resilient and innovative sector. Reflecting UN Tourism’s commitment to build resilience and create opportunities through diversification, the significant potential of wellness tourism for the region was made clear. So too was the growing importance of gastronomy tourism as a pillar of rural development and cultural heritage. In Muscat, Secretary-General Pololikashvili formally presented the Omani Minister of Tourism and Heritage with a brochure on Gastronomy Tourism in the Sultanate.

Also high on the agenda were education and investments. The Middle East has emerged as a leading hub of both. With UN Tourism, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is taking the lead in providing professional education and training to tens of thousands of tourism workers, including at the new Riyadh School of Hospitality. The region is also an investment hub, with 254 greenfield projects announced in the Middle East between 2018 and 2023, representing a total capital investment of USD 15.2 billion. Reflecting this, the second day of the Commission will feature a special Conference on "Investing in Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges for Sustainable Financing.”

In the build-up to the commission meeting, His Highness Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al-Said, Deputy Prime Minister of the Council of Ministers of Sultanate of Oman, held a special audience with the UN Tourism Secretary-General and with the Heads of delegations. His Excellency welcomed the opportunity to host the landmark 50th meeting of the Regional Commission, as well as its first since the rebranding of UNWTO to UN Tourism.

To conclude, Members agreed that the 51st Regional Commission for the Middle East will be held in Doha, Qatar, in 2025.

Related links

• Download News Release on PDF
• UN Tourism Regional Department for the Middle East
• The 50th UN Tourism Regional Commission for the Middle East and the Conference on “Investing in Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges in Sustainable Financing”
• Investments Strategy

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UN Tourism Members Promote Investment and Education as International Arrivals to the Americas Grow

• Americas
• 30 Apr 2024

The 69th meeting of the UN Tourism Regional Commission for the Americas brought together prominent representatives of countries of the region in the Cuban city of Varadero. The meeting addressed the challenges and opportunities of the tourism sector that the region is facing.

The meeting was held in a positive context, as data for 2023 shows an 88% recovery in international arrivals, compared to the results recorded before the pandemic. This percentage translates to 1.3 billion trips globally, which is 34% more than in 2022.  

In the case of the Americas, the UN Tourism Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, highlighted the good figures recorded, which even exceeded the global average: “The region recovered 90% of pre-pandemic levels in 2023. In addition, only four subregions around the world have increased the number of arrivals compared to the 2019 figures, with two of them belonging to the region’s area of influence: Central America and the Caribbean, with growth of 5% and 1% respectively. For its part, South America almost reached the results of 2019, recovering 94% of arrivals, while North America registered 87%. These figures lead us to consider a new scenario for tourism in the Americas." 

The investment framework in the region 

For its part, South America almost reached the results of 2019, recovering 94% of arrivals, while North America registered 87%. These figures lead us to consider a new scenario for tourism in the Americas.

Tourism investment was one of the main topics of the Regional Commission, taking into account that, between 2018 and 2023, Latin America and the Caribbean received 359 greenfield foreign direct investment (FDI) projects, which totalled 29.526 billion US dollars and represent more than 115,000 jobs.  

During the meeting, the specific case of Cuba was presented. The country is among the ten leading countries in terms of receipt of investment announcements in the tourism cluster. This list is headed by Mexico (109 projects announced) and Colombia (45), followed by Brazil and the Dominican Republic (with 33 each), Peru (30) and Argentina (24). This is followed by Cuba, Costa Rica and Chile with the same number of projects (17 each) and Ecuador with 6 initiatives. 

Likewise, in the presentation of the data, the importance of Latin American and Caribbean countries as investors in the Americas was also evident, since, in the same period between 2018 and 2023, entrepreneurs of the region made 80 greenfield foreign direct investment announcements, for a total of 3.898 billion US dollars.  

Education and technical training to create value in tourism development 

Education was another of the topics addressed at the meeting. Training plays a crucial role in empowering people with the skills and knowledge that tourism demands. These training activities allow them to evolve in their professional careers and move towards an improvement in employment, which has a direct impact on the development of the sector. 

Latin America has been able to recognize the importance of initiatives aimed at education and technical training promoted by associations, educational institutions, government agencies and private sector actors. In this way, it is intended to promote tourism growth that preserves cultural heritage and protects natural resources.  

In this regard, Natalia Bayona, Executive Director of UN Tourism assured: “Education is key for UN Tourism and is also present in relations with Cuba. In fact, the Organization has awarded a total of 960 scholarships in the region for online courses in our Tourism Online Academy, the virtual teaching platform with free and accessible courses for everyone. Of the total, 30 scholarships have gone to Cuba, the host country." 

Tourism Law Observatory for Latin America and the Caribbean 

Uruguay's candidature to host the office of the Tourism Law Observatory for Latin America and the Caribbean in Montevideo was also considered on the agenda of the conference.  

This entity, created jointly by UN Tourism and the Inter-American Development Bank, will be in charge of managing a pioneering digital tool that allows – in a continuous and systematic way – to collect, analyse, update and disseminate tourism regulations. The platform, which is being developed with the support of a network of academic collaborators and experts in Tourism Law, will include both the current regulations in the region and those that are in the process of development. 

Preparations for World Tourism Day  

The regional meeting closed with a review of the preparations for World Tourism Day, which will be celebrated on 27 September. In 2024, Georgia will host this celebration, which will take place under the theme 'Tourism and Peace' to highlight the role that the sector can play as a vehicle for agreement and an instrument of harmony.  

Related links:

• Download News Release on PDF
• International Tourism to Reach Pre-Pandemic Levels in 2024
• 69th Meeting of UN Tourism Regional Commission for the Americas
• Tourism Online Academy

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UNWTO Members Meet to Rethink Agenda for African Tourism

• Africa
• 27 Jul 2023

Tourism leaders from across Africa have met to rethink and realign the sector’s role as a driver of development and opportunity across the region.

At the 66th meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for Africa, Member States joined representatives from international organizations and the private sector to focus on opportunities around tourism jobs and investments while also recognizing the vital need to address challenges including the climate crisis.

The UNWTO Agenda for Africa has been adapted. Our vision for African tourism is also one of strong governance, more education and more and better jobs

Tourism in Africa: Bouncing Back

According to the latest UNWTO data, tourism across Africa is returning to strength following the unprecedented crisis caused by the pandemic:

• International arrivals across Africa were back to 88% of pre-pandemic levels at the end of the first quarter of this year.
• At the sub-regional level, North Africa is performing particularly strongly. Here, arrivals were actually 4% higher than the pre-pandemic levels of 2019 in the same period.
• Globally international tourism receipts reached USD 1 billion in 2022, a 50% growth in real terms compared to 2021. Among African destinations with available data, Morocco and Mauritius notably exceeded their 2019 tourism receipts in the first quarter of 2023.

Welcoming delegates, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: "The UNWTO Agenda for Africa has been adapted. Our vision for African tourism is also one of strong governance, more education and more and better jobs. To achieve it, we aim to promote innovation, advocate for Brand Africa, facilitate travel, and unlock growth through investment and public-private partnerships.

Members meet in Mauritius

UNWTO welcomed delegations from 33 countries, including 22 Ministers of Tourism, two Deputy Ministers and four Ambassadors to the meeting, the most important annual event for the region's Member States.

Reflecting the high level of political support for the event, and for UNWTO's mission to guide tourism development across Africa, the meeting welcomed the attendance of the Prime Minister Republic of Mauritius Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, as well as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Housing and Land Use Planning, Minister of Tourism, Republic of Mauritius, and Vice-Chair of the UNWTO Executive Council Steven Obeegadoo. Also in attendance were the African Union Commissioner for Trade and Development, Albert Muchanga, the Secretary-General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe, the Secretary-General of the Commonweath, Patricia Scotland KC, Special Advisor to the UNWTO Secretary-General Lai Mohammed, UN Resident Coordinator for Mauritius and Seychelles Lisa S. Singh, the Resident Representative of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Amanda Seumaga, and representatives from the African Development Bank, the World Bank, and from IFEMA and the Tui Care Foundation.

Members were provided with an overview of UNWTO's achievements over the past year, with a particular focus on core priorities for tourism in Africa:

• Tourism Investments: UNWTO presented a new set of Investment Guidelines for Mauritius, designed to connected investors with tourism projects in the country. The Guidelines follow on from similar publications focused on Tanzania, with editions for Malawi, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda and Zambia in development. UNWTO has also held two Tourism Investment Forums in Africa.
• Gender Equality and Youth Empowerment: With tourism recognized for its unique ability to drive gender equality and empower African youth, Members were advised on the progress of the UNWTO Women in Tourism Leadership for Africa Committee, and the Organization's focus on education and training. Key achievements include the Travel Hospitality and Tourism Education Summit (Zambia, May 2023) and plans to open an International Academy in Nigeria.
• Advocating for 'Brand Africa': Members were provided with an update on UNWTO's work to empower African tourism professionals to take charge of the narrative, including through two editions of the Brand Africa Think Tank Dialogue and plans for a UNWTO Media Training Workshop.

In close collaboration with its Member States from across the region, UNWTO has also updated its Agenda for Africa – Tourism for Inclusive Growth. The revised roadmap reflects the new challenges of post-pandemic tourism and the priorities outlined by Members.

Tourism addresses climate action

UNWTO continues to lead tourism's shift to greater sustainability, recognizing the impact of extreme weather events, including the potential for heat waves to cut off the lifeline the sector offers for destinations worldwide. In Mauritius, Members were given an update of UNWTO's work around sustainability, most notably its leadership of the One Planet Tourism Network and the progress of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism.

Tourism for rural development

Against the backdrop of the Regional Commission meeting, Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili enjoyed an official visit to Le Morne, recognized by UNWTO as one of its Best Tourism Villages. The Mauritian village of Old Grand Port was also awarded the accolade.

Related links

• Download the News Release in PDF
• The 66TH Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for Africa
• UNWTO Regional Department for Africa

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African Tourism United to Transform Sector for Growth and Opportunity

• Africa
• 7 Oct 2022

Tourism leaders from across Africa have come together to rethink the sector and its central role in driving growth and opportunity across the continent.

The 65th meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for Africa brought together around 25 Ministers of Tourism and high-level representatives from 35 countries as well as leaders from the private sector. Taking place in Tanzania just days after UNWTO celebrated World Tourism Day, the Commission meeting embraced that day’s theme of ‘Rethinking Tourism’, with a focus on innovation, branding, jobs and education and partnerships.

But we must look beyond just the numbers and rethink how tourism works so that our sector can deliver on its unique potential to transform lives, drive sustainable growth and provide opportunity everywhere in Africa

Welcoming delegates, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili provided Members with an update of the Organization’s activities and accomplishments in the 12 months since the previous Commission meeting. He said: “Tourism in Africa has a long history of bouncing back. And it has shown its resilience again. Many destinations are reporting strong arrival numbers. But we must look beyond just the numbers and rethink how tourism works so that our sector can deliver on its unique potential to transform lives, drive sustainable growth and provide opportunity everywhere in Africa.”

Tourism recovery underway in Africa

The Regional Commission of Africa meeting was held as tourism’s recovery gets underway across the continent. According to the latest UNWTO data, for the first seven months of the year, international arrivals across Africa were 171% up on 2021 levels, driven largely by regional demand. To help Members capitalize on the sector’s return, and to build greater sustainability and resilience, UNWTO is prioritizing jobs and training alongside greater and more-targeted investment in tourism. On the eve of this week’s meeting, UNWTO launched a set of Investment Guidelines focused on Tanzania, designed to support foreign investment in the country.

His Excellency Kassim Majaliwa, Prime minister of the United Republic of Tanzania warmly welcomed all delegates and UNWTO officials, calling on them to “embrace sustainability” and highlighting the work Tanzania has been undertaking to protect the natural habitats and wildlife that help make it a popular destination while also increasing inclusivity in the sector. Tanzania’s Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Pindi Hazara Chana, also noted that the country is looking to diversity its tourism sector in order to boost arrival numbers and revenues over the next five years.

Short-term recovery and long-term transformation

Discussions at the the Commission meeting focused on both the immediate and longer-term recovery of tourism across the continent, including through redefining the roadmap of the UNWTO Agenda for Africa 2030. Key topics highlighted by the high-level participants included accelerating tourism for inclusive growth, advancing the sustainability of the sector and the role of public-private partnerships in achieving both of these goals. Alongside this, the heightened relevance of air connectivity, including low-cost air travel within Africa, as well as the pressing need to support small businesses (SMEs) in gaining the digital tools and knowledge they need to compete, was also discussed.   

To conclude the meeting, Members came to a consensus to host the meeting in Mauritius in 2023 and Algeria in 2024.

Related links:

• Download the news release in PDF
• 65th UNWTO Regional Commission for Africa
• World Tourism Day 2022: Rethink Tourism

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As Asia and Pacific Opens Up, Leaders Look to Innovative and Resilient Tourism

• Asia and the Pacific
• 15 Jun 2022

Tourism leaders from across Asia and the Pacific have placed building resilience and embracing innovation at the heart of the sector’s restart and sustainable future.

The 34th Joint Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for East Asia and the Pacific and the UNWTO Commission for South Asia (34th CAP-CSA), was held as destinations across the region begin welcoming back international tourists. The region was hit first and hit hardest by the pandemic’s impact on tourism as many countries maintained strict restrictions on travel. Now, as UNWTO data confirms a 64% increase in international arrivals in the first quarter of 2022 compared to 2021, the high-level meeting of sector leaders identified the key challenges and opportunities ahead.

UNWTO’s Work in the Region

For many millions of people across Asia and the Pacific, tourism is an essential lifeline

UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili provided an overview of tourism trends and statistics, both for the region and globally, followed by an update on the Organization’s work in the months since the previous Joint Commission meeting (hosted virtually by Spain in 2021). He stressed the importance of working together to lift travel restrictions, with coordination key to restarting tourism and for restoring confidence in international travel. “For many millions of people across Asia and the Pacific, tourism is an essential lifeline. Its return is vital and must be based around the pillars of inclusion and sustainability, for the benefit of all”, he said.

The meeting was the first in-person gathering of the CAP- CSA for two years and brought together representatives of 19 Member States, as well as from UNWTO’s network of Affiliate Members. Welcoming delegates, Dr. Abdulla Mausoom, Minister of Tourism of the Maldives and Chair of the Joint Meeting, added: “Though the road to recovery is still uncertain and many challenges remain, global coordination through similar platforms will open up the opportunity to build back more comprehensively towards a sustainable, inclusive and resilient tourism sector for the future.”

Resilience through Innovation

The 34th CAP- CSA was held in the Maldives as the country celebrated 50 years as an international tourism destination. Against the backdrop of the Golden Jubilee, the Ministry of Tourism of the Maldives and UNWTO also partnered to host a Ministerial Roundtable on Tourism Resilience through Innovation and Digitalization in Asia and the Pacific. Recognizing the vulnerabilities exposed by the pandemic, the discussion explored ways in which new technology and new ideas can help better protect tourism against shocks including future pandemics as well as extreme weather events.

Concluding the joint meeting, Member States voted to hold the next gathering in Cambodia in the first semester of 2023. On the back of the high-level meeting, UNWTO will host a two-day Global Summit on Community-based Tourism, bringing public and private sector experts together to focus on the potential of gastronomy tourism, agro-tourism and community-based tourism for sustainable and inclusive development.

Related Links

• Download the news release in PDF
• UNWTO Regional Department for Asia and the Pacific
• UNWTO Executive Council Looks Beyond Recovery
• Tourism Product
• 145 key tourism statistics

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Jobs, Recovery, Sustainability: European Tourism Leaders Meet as Sector Restarts

• Europe
• 3 Jun 2022

The European Member States of UNWTO have highlighted the importance of jobs, professional training and sustainability and innovation as they jointly guide the recovery of tourism across the region.

The 67^th meeting of the UNWTO Commission for Europe (Yerevan, Armenia, 1-3 June 2022) convened as the restart of European tourism gathered pace. Of the 47 countries in the world that have lifted all restrictions on travel, 31 are in Europe. Against this backdrop, Member States looked to the future to address both short-term challenges and longer-term opportunities for tourism to grow as a driver of sustainable and inclusive development.

High-level representatives from 35 Members States and many representatives of the European and global tourism private sectors were given an overview of UNWTO’s work in the region since the last Regional Commission meeting in Athens in June 2021.

Political recognition

From the start of the pandemic and into the recovery phase of the crisis, Europe has led by example in supporting and restarting tourism

Opening the session, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia, Hambardzum Matevosyan called tourism a “locomotive” for recovery and opportunity, both in Europe and globally. With Armenia celebrating 25 years as a UNWTO Member State, Mr Matevosyan commended the Organization’s work in bridging the public and private sectors and making tourism a pillar of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili met personally with the President of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan with the Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzooyan, acknowledging their leadership and support for tourism and discussing ways in which UNWTO can further support the country as it grows its tourism in size and significance, with a focus on investments and on rural development.

Also opening the session were the Minister of the Economy for Armenia, Vahan Kerobyan, and Sofia Zacharaki, Deputy Minister of Tourism of Greece and current Chair of the UNWTO Regional Commission. Ms Zacharaki also commended UNWTO’s leadership through the crisis and stressed that the determination to restart tourism for economic recovery “must not outweigh our efforts to become more sustainable”.

UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “From the start of the pandemic and into the recovery phase of the crisis, Europe has led by example in supporting and restarting tourism. At the heart of this has been cooperation and coordination, the same spirit that must lead all European destinations forward as they use the power of tourism to drive development and growth for all.”

Ms. Sisian Boghossian, Chair of the Tourism Committee of the Ministry of Economy emphasised: “Armenia reasserts its commitment to effective cooperation with all UNWTO member states to achieve the joint goals aimed at implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Tourism is a priority sector of the economy in Armenia which is not only defined in the Law on Tourism but also expressed in the political agenda and included in the Government´s program”.

Delivering results

The Secretary-General provided an updated overview of the latest international tourism data and trends and made clear how even in challenging times, UNWTO advanced its priority areas of work, with a focus on boosting tourism investments, promoting innovation and entrepreneurship, tourism jobs and education and accelerating sustainability.

UNWTO Regional Director for Europe, Alessandra Priante, highlighted current initiatives and future regional implementation of the UNWTO programme of work, stressing the importance of fostering the successful methodology of cooperation with and within the most visited region in the world: Europe. She pointed out the landmark projects focused on youth, with the first Global Youth Tourism Summit to be hosted in Sorrento, Italy, the Students’ Leagues in the various European countries and on rural development, with the 2nd edition of the World’s Best Tourism Villages following the great succusses of the initiative in 2021, and UNWTO’s technical assistance projects supporting tourism recovery to grow back sustainably and responsibly were further highlights.

As part of the high-level policy discussion, delegates highlighted the need to balance short-term measures for enabling a swift recovery of tourism, notably addressing workforce shortages, making jobs more attractive and retaining the right talent with sustainability imperatives, including measurement, investing in tourism education, and capacity-building.

Tourism and Rural Development

On the occasion of the Commission Meeting, UNWTO and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), with the support of the government of Armenia, partnered to set the stage for a discussion about tourism’s role in rural development and how to build bigger synergies between agriculture and tourism.

With a special focus on design thinking to enhance local experiences and add value to destinations, gastronomy and wine tourism, the event highlighted the need to work on infrastructure, governance, product development, collaboration frameworks, quality and market access, digitalization and capacity building. Counting on the participation of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the conference highlighted the value of intellectual property to protect and value of local products and processes. The event closed with a Masterclass on Gastronomy Tourism to support knowledge building and capacity for Members States and stakeholders in Armenia.

Members of the region unanimously agreed to have Bulgaria host the 68th session of the UNWTO Regional Commission in 2023.

Related Links

• Download the news release in PDF
• 67th Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for Europe
• UNWTO Regional Department for Europe

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UNWTO’s Members in the Americas Advance Common Goals

• Americas
• 20 May 2022

The American Members of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) have met to assess the current state of the sector and plan for its sustainable future. The 67th meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas brought tourism leaders from across the region together in the leading destination of Punta del Este, Uruguay.

Across two days, Tourism Ministers and other high-level representatives, including private sector leaders and delegates form international organizations reviewed UNWTO’s leadership of the sector over the past year, with Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili’s report focused on key international tourism trends and the Organization’s key priorities for the region, including work around education and investments.

High-level support of hosts

Tourism has proven potential to inspire change and drive growth across the Americas

The Regional Commission was inaugurated by the President of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou, who was joined Minister of Tourism and host of the gathering, Tabaré Viera, and by the country’s Minister of Foreign Relations, Francisco Bustillo. The meeting came just two weeks after Uruguay hosted a global UNESCO conference, reflecting the country’s commitment to multilateral cooperation and support for the mission and values of the United Nations, among which tourism for development is key.

President Lacalle welcomed the UNWTO leadership, stating that tourism remains a key part of Uruguay’s state economic policy, and the Commission meeting “emphasized the importance of everyone working for the reactivation of tourism”, both in Uruguay and across the wider region.

UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “Tourism has proven potential to inspire change and drive growth across the Americas and UNWTO’s Member States of the region are showing the way forward in building a tourism sector that works for everyone, with sustainability and inclusiveness at its heart.”

Alongside the Commission Meeting, both met in private to further deepen the already-strong partnership between UNWTO and Uruguay, a key ally in the region and promoter of tourism for development across the Americas, including through high-level multilateral platforms and organizations.

Minister Tabaré Viera underscored Uruguay’s commitment to restart tourism, reminding participants that this first major tourism gathering in Uruguay since the start of the pandemic, sent a clear message beyond the region itself. The Minister also announced that Uruguay will adhere to the UNWTO International Code for the Protection of Tourists, and so be among the first countries in the world to take firm steps to restore confidence in international travel, further emphasizing Uruguay's commitment to tourism and to keeping tourists safe and protected.

Turning challenges into opportunities

UNWTO Members addressed the key challenges facing tourism today and opportunities for recovery and growth. The debates among member states were complemented by special interventions, including the presentation the Tourism Promotion Hub for Latin America, Latina Tower, in New York City, and by the Latin American Development Bank (CAF).

CAF, the leading investor in infrastructure across the region, addressed for the first time a UNWTO governing body, advancing the newly-established partnership between the Bank and UNWTO. Alongside this, a policy discussion on “Accelerating Recovery and Building Resilience”, benefitted from insights of leaders from across the region,  

Generating trust

Within the framework of the Regional Commission, Members met for a seminar on the UNWTO International Code for the Protection of Tourists. The landmark legal code, designed to offer tourists more protection and so increase confidence in international travel, was adopted by Members at the UNWTO General Assembly in 2021. Two countries of the Americas, Ecuador and Paraguay have already made steps to incorporating it into national legislation, while Uruguay will initiate the corresponding process. UNWTO’s legal experts provided updates on the implementation and workings of the Code, with a focus on addressing existing gaps in the provision of assistance to tourists caught in emergency situations, drawing from lessons of the pandemic.

Next Steps

On the side-lines of the Regional Commission meeting, Secretary-General Pololikashvili met with the Minister of Tourism of Brazil, Carlos Brito, and then separately with Minister of Tourism from Guatemala, Ms. Anayansy Rodríguez, to discuss their countries’ tourism sectors and opportunities to work more closely with UNWTO in the post-pandemic recovery phase.  
To conclude, Members States voted to hold the 68th meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas in Ecuador in the first half of 2023.

Related Links

• Download the news release in PDF
• UNWTO Regional Department for the Americas
• UNWTO International Code for the Protection of Tourists

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Middle East Members Focus on Tourism’s Sustainable Recovery

• Middle East
• 28 Mar 2022

UNWTO has successfully celebrated the 48th session of its Regional Commission for the Middle East. Returning to Egypt for the third time since 2018, the Commission addressed the pressing challenges faced by tourism and looked to the future as the sector’s recovery gathers pace across the region.

According to the latest UNWTO data, international arrivals to destinations in the Middle East were 52% higher in January than in the same month of 2021. UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili told Members that the return of tourism represented a chance to reassert the values of the sector as a pillar of peace and prosperity, particularly given the background of economic uncertainty and an armed conflict in Europe.

In his report, the Secretary-General provided an overview of UNWTO’s work in the Middle East and globally for the past year. The report also focused on UNWTO’s strategic objectives and core priorities for the year ahead, including making tourism smarter, promoting green investments and entrepreneurship, supporting education and jobs, building resilience and protecting natural and cultural heritage. In the coming year, several new projects will be directed out of the UNWTO Regional Office for the Middle East, opened in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in May 2021. The office will focus on guiding sustainable tourism recovery in the region, with a focus on rural development and on innovation, education and investments.

Across the Middle East, tourism is growing in size and relevance, driving recovery and promoting sustainable development

Mr Pololikashvili said: “Across the Middle East, tourism is growing in size and relevance, driving recovery and promoting sustainable development. UNWTO’s Members in the region are committed to realizing the unique potential of tourism, and the Organization is committed to working closely with its Members around innovation, sustainability, jobs and education as our shared priorities.”

UNWTO’s enhanced presence across the region was highlighted through reference to a wide range of country-specific projects and partnerships, including online training in Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, a special statistics workshop in Bahrain, crisis communications training in Lebanon and an action plan on women’s empowerment in Jordan.

Sustainability and capacity building

Members warmly welcomed updates on UNWTO’s actions in the region, designed to help the sector become more inclusive, sustainable and resilient. Through the Green Hotel Revitalization Programme, UNWTO is working with the International Finance Corporation to train more than 30 hotels in Egypt in adopting sustainability practices and reducing their carbon footprints. UNWTO is also stepping up capacity building across the region, with a focus on gender equality and youth empowerment.

In Cairo, delegates were provided with a comprehensive overview of the Organization’s work in this area, including through the creation of a UNWTO Knowledge Lab for the region and through the provision of a new range of training and educational courses in the Arabic language, most notably through a new e-learning project being implemented in partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom will fund 1,300 scholarships for students from 13 Members States, to foster human capital development and youth empowerment across the region.

Strengthening high-level ties

UNWTO informed about the close collaboration with the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Arab Tourism Organization, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Islamic Development Bank.

Welcoming such collaboration, Dr. Khaled El-Enany, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities of the Arab Republic of Egypt credited the Regional Commission as a platform to draw a roadmap for the sector’s future. He said: “Basing our work on UNWTO's guidelines, we protected jobs through the crisis and now are now in a strong position to recover and grow back better. Ahead of Egypt’s hosting of the COP27 climate summit, we will continue to make tourism a pillar of sustainability, as well as a vital protector of our famous heritage and culture.”

Members decided that the 49th Regional Commission for the Middle East will be held in Jordan in 2023, while Lebanon will host the 50th meeting in 2024.

Related links:

• Download the news release in PDF
• UNWTO: Regional Department for the Middle East
• Tourism Awareness and Human Capacity Building: Towards a Sustainable Tourism Society

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