UNWTO and GTEF plot stronger collaboration

Monday, April 24, 2023

UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the Global Tourism Economic Forum (GTEF) have outlined their plans for stronger and closer collaboration.

Since the first Forum was held in 2012, the two organisations have partnered around promoting closer links between governments and tourism’s private sector.

Building on this success, UNWTO and GTEF have announced plans for a revamped and enhanced annual Forum to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the event in Macau, China (September 21).

The location of subsequent Forums will then alternate between Macau and a different host country, to be jointly selected by UNWTO and GTEF.

Announcing the plans in Lisbon, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said, UNWTO is proud to work with the Global Tourism Economic Forum to unite governments and private sector leaders and address the biggest challenges and opportunities facing our sector today. They look forward to building on our successful partnership in 2023 and beyond.

Pansy Ho, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General, GTEF, said, “In response to China’s policies in supporting enterprises to ‘go global’, we will stage the GTEF, an international platform, overseas every other year. Looking forward to the future, we believe that mainland China, Macao, and even the world can benefit from the event.”

The 10th edition of GTEF will be held around the theme of “Destination 2030: Unlocking Tourism for Business and Development”. It will bring together Governments as well as leaders from across the public and private sectors to further establish the Forum as the premier annual event for public-private partnerships and tourism for business growth and development.

Also in Lisbon, UNWTO signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Global Tourism Economy Research Centre (GTERC), the coordinator of GTEF, to work together to identify areas of future cooperation.

Joining UNWTO Secretary-General Pololikashvili for the announcement were Ho Iat Seng, Chief Executive of Macao SAR; Zhao Bentang, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Portuguese Republic, and Nuno Fazenda, Secretary of State for Tourism, Trade and Services, Portugal.

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