Tourism that’s good for the planet and its inhabitants

The southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu has been the host of UN talks on how to make sure tourism plays a key role in sustainable development. The capital of Sichuan Province is famous for a tourist attraction that has become one of the main research centres attempting to save the endangered giant panda. The city’s breeding programme has helped bring the species back from the brink of extinction, producing almost 50 newborns in the last three years alone. Euronews’ Seamus Kearney reported: “It’s against the backdrop of a project like this that the UN World Tourism Organisation is hoping to make progress on a key question: how can tourism be used as a tool for development, but also be good for the planet and its inhabitants.” At the 22nd UNWTO General Assembly, delegates from more than 130 countries were given a strong message: tourism is a power that must be harnessed for the benefit of all. 2017 has been designated the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. The Secretary General of the UN World Tourism Organisation, Taleb Rifai, told Euronews: “Sustainability is about sustaining life for the future generations. No responsible society, no responsible community, must be left behind in this endeavour. “At stake is life tomorrow. So if you don’t do something about it today, then tomorrow is lost.” As well as tourism that respects the environment, many countries hope to use it to tackle poverty in vulnerable areas. Peru’s Deputy Minister of Tourism, Rogers Valencia Espinoza, told Euronews: “These enterprises have to integrate the population and combat poverty. We have a big challenge ahead, with a 30% rate of poverty. “That’s why there has to be a good environmental aspect and a sound business that can deliver quality products to foreign visitors.” Ghana’s Minister of Tourism, Catherine Abelema Afeku, said: “For Ghana, tourism is centralised. It’s a theme that links properly with sustainable development, so using tourism as a tool for development. The key component is elimination of poverty, education.” Fighting poverty is also crucial in China, the world’s fourth most popular holiday destination, and Chengdu has launched an integrated development programme called Tourism Plus. The director of the Chengdu Municipal Tourism Administration, Duo Yang Na Mu, told Euronews: “For example, tourism plus healthcare and rehabilitation; tourism plus sports; tourism plus ecological construction; and tourism plus culture.” Using tourism to preserve cultural heritage is also big for other countries; Portugal, for example, has included this in a 200-million-euro programme. The Portuguese Secretary of State for Tourism, Ana Mendes Godinho, said: “It has been incredible to see the dynamic way in which local communities have gone out to create projects that focus on the identity of their region, their products, and to transform these into tourism products.” Social development is another priority; Japan, for example, wants tourism to help its ageing population through greater contact with outside visitors. Mamoru Kobori, the Executive Vice President of the Japan National Tourism Organisation, told Euronews: “People can maintain their lifestyle and culture as sustainable through interacting with incoming visitors, enjoying the conversation and the different communications.” But Euronews’ Seamus Kearney reported: “There is also pressure on countries to put words into action. “There’s already a code of ethics for WTO member states. But there have been growing calls for a stronger international convention or charter,” he said. Chengdu provided plenty of food for thought on that: the general assembly agreed to a binding framework convention, covering everything from freedom of movement for holiday makers to the rights of tourism workers. The Secretary General of the UN World Tourism Organisation, Taleb Rifai, said: “The Global Code of Ethics was approved by the UNWTO General Assembly in 2001. We’ve been working with it and around it for 16 years. “It’s time now to move it to a different level; we feel that, we know that, because countries and member states need to take it more seriously. I’m not saying that they are not now, but a code is a code and a convention is a convention. “A code is a voluntary tool, a convention is a more responsible and more committing tool. That’s why this is the right time to move it to that level.” Since 2013 a special committee has been examining the best way to craft a convention. The Chairman of the World Committee on Tourism Ethics, Pascal Lamy, said in a statement: “In an interconnected world where the business volume of tourism equals or even surpasses that of oil exports, food products or automobiles, it is important to set out a legal framework to ensure that growth is dealt with responsibly and that it can be sustained over time.”