Number 6. March 2015

World Tourism Organization

UNWTOAMERICASunwto.org

Countries of the Americas among the founding members of the International ST-EP Organization The signing ceremony of the agreement for the creation of the International ST-EP (Sustainable Tourism - Eliminating Poverty) Organization took place on 4 February 2015, on the occasion of the 1st UNESCO/UNWTO World Conference on Tourism and Culture which was held in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Through the agreement, six countries—Cambodia, Colombia, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Paraguay and Peru—expressed their interest in joining the organization as founding members and to support the candidature of the Republic of Korea to host its headquarters.

In August 2013, the UNWTO General Assembly approved the proposal of the Secretary-General to transform the ST-EP Foundation into an independent international organization.

Since then, the UNWTO and the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Korea have worked in close collaboration towards the soonest possible realization of this project.

Carlos VogelerDirector - Executive Director of

Member Relations and RegionalDirector for the Americas

UNWTO Americas newsletter with the satisfaction of having closed 2014 with excellent results for tourism, especially in the region of the Americas, which posted the highest relative growth,

average of 4.7%.

2015 represents a watershed year with respect to the Millennium Development Goals and we should make a positive assessment of our involvement in numerous development projects related to tourism, in which our Organization has taken a highly active part. Now we have before us the Sustainable Development Goals, resulting from the Rio+20 Conference, which are aimed at continued progress in the eradication of poverty and the preservation of our environmental and cultural resources, while

fairly and contribute to the improvement of local communities to achieve a world that is less poor, more inclusive, more sustainable and fairer, and where tourism continues to favour this desired prosperity.

Furthermore, I would like to remind you that our region will be hosting two important events this year, the 58th meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas (CAM), together with the International Seminar Multidestination Opportunities for Regional Integration which will take place in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, from 19 to 22 May, and the 21st UNWTO General Assembly, on 12 to 17 September, in Medellín, Colombia.

We are also pleased to announce the entry of Barbados as a new

General Assembly and will certainly strengthen the representation of the Caribbean.

I trust that this issue of the newsletter will be of interest to you, and look forward to your attendance at these two important events.

Message from the Director

58th meetingof the RegionalCommissionfor the Americas

International Seminar: Multidestination Opportunities for Regional Integration

Port-au-Prince, Haiti (19-22 May, 2015)

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UNWTOAMERICAS

FITUR 2015 UNWTO/UNESCO World conference on tourism and culture

Tourism, which accounts for over one billion international arrivals each year, offers immense possibilities for economic development in destinations worldwide. Cultural tourism has demonstrated its capacity to increase competitiveness, create employment opportunities, reduce the rural exodus, generate revenue to invest in conservation and cultivate a sense of pride and self-esteem among host communities. However, in order to promote and effectively safeguard the heritage elements on which cultural tourism itself depends, it is crucial to develop a sustainable approach that involves multiple parties.

It was with this aim that more than 900 participants, including over 45 ministers and vice-ministers of tourism and of culture, international experts and guests from 100 countries gathered together at the UNWTO/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture held in Siem Reap, Cambodia, from 4 to 6 February to explore and promote new models of partnership between tourism and culture. Read more+

The 35th edition of the International Tourism Fair (FITUR), one of the leading international events for tourism industry professionals, took place from 28 January to 1 February. This edition of the fair attracted nearly 125,000 professionals from over 100 countries, and an estimated 225,000 participants in total, including attendance by the general public during the weekend.

As has been the case in previous years, the fair was marked by ceaseless activity and numerous meetings throughout its duration, yielding interesting results and projects, and therefore, the UNWTO thanks its Members for the trust they have placed in the Organization.

Among the notable activities concerning our region was the annual meeting of Ministers and Ambassadors of Central America, which took place on Friday, 30 January, at the UNWTO Headquarters. With representatives from each of the Central American Members, including Haiti and Colombia as special guests, it was a perfect opportunity to discuss the most important issues in the subregion.

Special congratulations were due to Uruguay, as it presented the Punta del Este 365 prototype, which was developed by

of overcoming seasonality.

Peru was another prominent participant at FITUR 2015 with the ¿Y tú qué planes? domestic tourism campaign of PromPerú, which received the prize for Innovation in Public Policy and Governance at the 11th UNWTO Awards Ceremony.

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Data

In 2014, international tourist arrivals totalled 1.138 billion, representing an increase of 4.7% over the previous year. The UNWTO's forecast for 2015 is that international tourism will increase by between 3% and 4%, and continue to contribute to the global economic recovery.

with growth of 7.4%, as it received 13 million additional international tourists raising its total to 181 million.

Upcoming events

Atlantic Initiative for Tourism 2015

11-13 March | Rabat, Morocco

FIT BOLIVIA 2015 – 19th International Tourism Fair

12-15 March | La Paz, Bolivia

UNWTO International Conference on Sustainable Religious

Tourism: fostering socio-economic development for host

communities

18-19 March | Bethlehem, Palestine

WTTC/UNWTO Ministerial Dialogue with Private Sector CEOs on

Expanding Investment Opportunities in Travel and Tourism

14 April 2015 | Madrid, Spain

IMTJ 2015 – Medical Travel Summit 2015

15-16 April | London, United Kingdom

WCT Expo 2015 – World Culture & Travel Expo

17–19 April | Atlanta, United States

1st UNWTO World Forum on Food Tourism

27-29 April | San Sebastian, Spain

6-8 May | Durban, South Africa

58th meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the

Americas

18-22 May | Port-au-Prince, Haiti

IMEX 2015 – The Worldwide Exhibition for incentive travel,

meetings and events

19-21 May | Frankfurt, Germany

100th session of the UNWTO Executive Council

27-29 May | Rovinj, Croatia

Regional Programme for the Americas: Carlos Vogeler, Alejandro Varela, Daniela Urcuyo, Esther Ruiz, Andrea GarcíaE-mail: cam@unwto.org Design: Alberto G. Uceda

www.unwto.org

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1.138 millIONS INTERNATIONAL TOURIST ARRIVALS 2014

UNWTOAMERICAS

Manual on Accessible Tourism for All: Public-Private Partnerships and Good PracticesThis publication is the result of the fruitful collaboration between the UNWTO and the Fundación ACS of Spain. Both parties are committed to enhancing the value of accessible heritage and cultural resources and to provide the necessary technical know-how to make the built and natural environment accessible for tourism use within the strategic framework of public-private partnerships. Read more+

The growth of cities and tourism

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Publications

Currently, more than half of the world population lives in cities, and this number will continue to increase exponentially. UN-Habitat predicts that by 2030, 5 billion people—or almost two-thirds of the world’s population—will be living in cities. Forecasts for 2050 predict that 70% of the world population will be urbanized.

Concomitantly with this upward trend, there is an increasing volume of “city breaks” or short weekend holidays in cities, which increased by 47% worldwide over the period 2009-2013.

Moreover, the close relationship between these two phenomena—the progressive expansion of tourism and rapid urbanization—cannot be ignored, since they have a considerable impact on urban tourism as a key factor in the economic development of cities. With this in mind, the development of sustainable tourism is crucial for striking a balance between the improvement of the visitor experience and the welfare of local residents.

Therefore, urban growth management policies and land use plans should give full consideration to the needs of tourism development, including the spatial distribution of tourist attractions, accessibility to visitors, congestion management and the conservation of cultural heritage.

Without responsible and careful tourism management, cities run the risk of becoming “victims of their own success”.

Sustainable tourism can rejuvenate cities through the improvement of infrastructure and capacity building of human resources, as well as by stimulating the entrepreneurial initiative of local businesses and promoting the development of public-private partnerships which attract industries and foster the creation of local services and recreational facilities.

By the same token, tourists contribute diversity to cities. The interaction between visitors and the local community plays an important role in cultural awareness, leading to a more tolerant and more respectful society.

The capital city of Ecuador will host the Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, Habitat III, in October 2016. The objective of the Conference is to reinvigorate the global commitment to sustainable urbanization and to identify and address the new urban challenges for the establishment of the New Urban Agenda. Read more+

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