Samarkand, Uzbekistan – The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) approved the re-election of Saudi Arabia as president of its executive council for 2024, at the 120th Executive Council meeting held in the Uzbek city of Samarkand.
The Minister of Tourism and Chairman of the Executive Council of UNWTO, Ahmed bin Aqeel Al-Khateeb, said that during the first presidency of the Kingdom in 2023, plenty of initiatives that comprised partnership, innovation, and progress were launched, “and the achievements during that period were based on the common vision, cooperation and firm commitment among all members of the organization.”
“We have all paved the way to build a vision for a resilient tourism sector, and we look forward to continuing our leadership role in 2024,” the minister said. “We recall the aspirations and hopes of all member states, and we will strive to implement the goals in a way that ensures that the tourism sector continues to achieve economic exchange and cultural and humanitarian rapprochement between world countries.”
He noted the establishment of the Sustainable Tourism Global Center (STGC) during the Saudi Green Initiative in October 2021.
Al- Khateeb confirmed that the center will provide best practices to meet the sector needs, including major multinational companies that have clear objectives and distinct experiences, in addition to micro, small and medium enterprises that constitute 80% of the sector.
The center recently announced the launch of an international research center that will work as a high-level reference body for research with the purpose of accelerating the travel and tourism sector’s transition to climate neutrality.