UNWTO Affiliate Members Corner: “Sustainability and Digitalization in Tourism Product Development”

Country: Maldives
Website: http://mati.mv/
The Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) is a non-governmental, non-profit organization formed in 1982, for the purpose of promoting and developing tourism in the Maldives. Three decades of MATI's service has been provided to almost all the travel and tourism related issues which arise in Maldives. A key function of MATI is coordinating with all mandatory government policy making bodies to align new laws and regulations to Tuorism Industry best practices. Additionally, we represent the industry internationally and locally by attending different seminars, organizing and providing research and offering professional consultation to governmental, private and international organizations.
Areas of focus:
In 2012, UNWTO Affiliate Members Programme launched the Global Report on Food Tourism outlining the state of gastronomy tourism. The report presented various examples of tourism and gastronomy professionals with extensive experience in international organizations, destination management, in both tourism enterprises and training schools.
The 2nd Global Report on Gastronomy Tourism proviodes recent trends in gastronomy tourism, in addition to experts’ analyses and case studies suggesting best practices. The report, developed by the UNWTO Affiliate Members Programme with case studies from 60 contributors including UNWTO Member States, Affiliate Members and partner organizations, showcases how gastronomy tourism can be a driver for modern tourism in creating authentic experiences while promoting sustainable tourism. The report offers an introduction to a variety of themes related to gastronomy tourism, such as case studies on product development and experience in gastronomy tourism, challenges, communication and branding, good practices as well as training and skills in gastronomy tourism. In essence, the 2nd Global Report on Gastronomy Tourism provides a holistic perspective of the state of gastronomy tourism today and an outlook for the future of the sector.
Kindly note that this Report is only available in English.
The UNWTO Affiliate Members Global Report, Volume fourteen on The transformative power of tourism: a paradigm shift towards a more responsible traveller is a joint publication with Affiliate Member, Institute of Tourism, Zagreb, Croatia.
The notion of transformative tourism refers to socially and environmentally conscientious tourists, who employ tourism as a transformative medium to re-invent themselves and promote sustainable practices that have a positive impact on local communities. The aim of this report is to illustrate with real-life initiatives that best reflect the great potential of transformative tourism in contributing to tourism development.
Youth travel has become one of the fastest growing segments of international tourism, representing more than 23% of the over one billion tourists traveling internationally each year. This growth represents tremendous socioeconomic opportunities for local communities as youth travellers stimulate local tourism businesses, foster closer social interaction with host populations and champion environmental protection.
This latest edition of The Power of Youth Travel leverages the extensive knowledge and expertise of UNWTO´s longstanding Affiliate Member, the World Youth Student and Educational (WYSE) Travel Confederation, and presents various case studies illustrating the value generated from the collaboration between private enterprises and public bodies in addressing the ever-changing demands of youth tourism.
The UNWTO Affiliate Members Global Report, Volume 12 on Cultural Routes and Itineraries is a joint publication with Affiliate Member, Agencia de Turismo de Las Islas Baleares (ATB). The report highlights current trends in cultural tourism providing insight on how cultural routes and itineraries contribute to tourism development. Cultural routes have provided destinations globally with a notable competitive advantage among cultural tourists who benefit from more innovative tourism products and valuable visitor experiences.
Recently, ATB has designed the Balearic Archaeosites as a cultural tourism product with an archaeological route for the whole of the archipelago. This report highlights similar cases and best practices from all over the world providing a framework for designing and establishing cultural routes globally. This phenomenon is beneficial to the tourism sector reaping sustainable socio-economic and cultural benefits across the different destinations among formulated routes.
PR No.: 15084
The UNWTO Affiliate Members Board has elected Mr. Edmund Bartlett as its new Chairman at the Board's Meeting held at the sidelines of the World Travel Market (WTM, London, United Kingdom, 3 November 2015).
Mr. Bartlett, former Minister of Tourism of Jamaica (2007-2011), is the Co-Founder of CTICo. Besides his career in tourism, for which he was named Man of the Year in 2009 by the Jamaica Observer, Mr. Bartlett has championed the cause of education and capacity building throughout his career. He is the Founder of the Jamaican Foundation for Children, which he continues to support.
As a Minister of Tourism of Jamaica, he served as a member of the UNWTO Executive Council, representing the Americas as well as Vice-Chairman of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas and Chairman of CARICOM’s Sub-Committee in the areas of Tourism and Transportation/Civil Aviation. He has also served as Vice President for the World Conference on Cultural Policies and as a Vice-Chairman of the UN International Youth Year Advisory Committee during International Youth Year.
Note to editors:
UNWTO Affiliate Members bring together over 480 companies, educational & research institutions, destinations and NGOs whose activities are related to tourism and which contribute to the UNWTO their knowledge and expertise to promote the development of tourism that’s responsible, sustainable and accessible for everyone. Over 80 countries are represented among the Affiliate Members, the world’s premier forum for exchanging tourism knowledge.
Contacts:
UNWTO Media Officer: Rut Gómez Sobrino
Tel: (+34) 91 567 81 60
UNWTO Communications & Publications Programme
Tel: (+34) 91 567 8100 / Fax: +34 91 567 8218