The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) said that it was sticking to its end-January 2009 forecast that international tourist arrivals could drop by up to 2% in this year. But it reserves the right to revisit the numbers as trends become clearer in the light of the global economic recession. “This is not a tourism crisis. It’s an economic crisis that spills over into tourism,” Rifai said, since tourism is inextricably linked to so many economic sectors. “And tourism drives so many other sectors as well”…
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) said that it was sticking to its end-January 2009 forecast that international tourist arrivals could drop by up to 2% in this year. But it reserves the right to revisit the numbers as trends become clearer in the light of the global economic recession. “This is not a tourism crisis. It’s an economic crisis that spills over into tourism,” Rifai said, since tourism is inextricably linked to so many economic sectors. “And tourism drives so many other sectors as well.”
Europe’s tourism industry will likely see the largest drop in visitors, but small countries dependent on foreign spending might suffer most, Rifai said. Europe’s decline could be partially offset by a boon in new tourism from China. Some 45 million Chinese travelled abroad in 2008, and China hopes to double that number by 2012. Rifai said that Europeans and Americans were also likely to keep their plans to travel abroad. “In the past 20 years, travel has become more of a right,” he said. “The right to move around. The right to relax.”
Meanwhile, UNWTO is this morning hosting the second meeting of its Tourism Resilience Committee. The main goal is to implement a plan of action, sending a message to world leaders gathering for the upcoming G20 meeting that they should put travel and tourism into their stimulus packages.
“We believe that if tourism is supported by governments and handled correctly, it can really help to stimulate economic recovery,” Rifai said. “And, for the first time ever, UNWTO and other international and regional organisations – like WTTC, IH&RA, ETC, PATA and CTO – towards a common goal. “When they think of tourism, we want governments to think of incentives, not taxes,” he said.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
