At the meeting of the Ministers of Tourism of the world’s leading economies, G20, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) unveiled a roadmap for making tourism a central pillar of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development in Goa India.
The G20 economies represent around 85% of the global GDP, over 75% of the global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population. In 2022, the G20 welcomed 74% of international tourists and 73% of tourism exports worldwide. In 2019, pre COVID-19 pandemic the Tourism Direct GDP reached 3.7% of the G20 economies.
As the knowledge partner of India’s G20 Presidency, UNWTO delivered the Goa Roadmap for tourism as a vehicle for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Goa Roadmap offers the G20 economies a proposed plan of action to lead the way forward towards a better future for all.
Recall that halfway between the 2015 launch of the 2030 Agenda and the deadline to accomplish it, UNWTO called on G20 Tourism Ministers to lead the sector’s contribution to accelerating progress towards achieving the 17 SDGs. The Goa Roadmap, developed with the Tourism Working Group, builds upon the five priority areas under India’s G20 Presidency.
•Green Tourism: Recognising the critical need to work towards climate action and environmental protection and related international cooperation, the Goa Roadmap incorporates recommended actions and good practices from G20 economies and guest countries on issues such as financing, sustainable infrastructure and resource management, integrating circular approaches in the tourism value chain and engaging visitors as key actors in sustainability.
•Digitisation: The Roadmap makes clear the wide-ranging benefits of supporting businesses and destinations embracing digitalisation, including enhanced productivity, improved infrastructure management and delivering a safer and more efficient visitor experience.
•Skills: Reflecting one of UNWTO’s core priorities for the sector, the Roadmap emphasises the need to provide tourism workers, particularly youth and women, with the skills employers need, to future-proof tourism jobs and to make the sector a more attractive career path.
•Tourism MSMEs: With Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) accounting for 80% of all tourism businesses worldwide, the Roadmap emphasises the importance of public policies and public-private partnerships in addressing key challenges, including financing, marketing and skills gaps and market access to support MSMEs through the digital and sustainable transitions.
•DestinationManagement: The Roadmap presents a set of proposed actions to create a holistic approach to destination management that strengthens public-private-community partnerships and enhances a whole of government approach. It further shares examples of innovative programmes among G20 and invited countries.
Remarking on the development, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “As tourism bounces back close to pre-pandemic levels, we must ensure that recovery is sustainable, inclusive and resilient.”
Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region Government of India, Shri G. Kishan Reddy said “Tourism can be instrumental in addressing many of the challenges faced by our societies while transforming itself to address its socio-economic impacts. Working together on a common roadmap for recovery and long-term sustainability will unlock its immense potential to deliver on the SDGs.”
