UAE welcomed back to UNWTO after 26 years
The UAE has rejoined the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) after 26 years
UNWTO said it would work with the UAE on several initiatives including the measurement of the economic impact of tourism, statistics and human resources development.
According to the UNWTO, between 1980 and 2010 international tourist arrivals in the Middle East rose from 7.1 million to 60.9 million, an average annual increase of 7.4%, which is higher that the world’s average of 4.2%.
UNWTO secretary-general Taleb Rifai, speaking at the UNWTO and Arabian Travel Market Ministerial Forum in Dubai, said that tourism in the region continued to grow despite the challenges.
“Much of this dynamism has been led by the strong political commitment awarded to tourism in the region and the vision that tourism is a key pillar of development in the Middle East of which the UAE is a perfect example,” he said.
UNWTO estimates that tourism growth in the Middle East is set to continue, with arrivals expected to reach 149 million by 2030.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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