Tourism is an undeniable key element in global economic development, with a big impact in the lives of millions of people. And with air transport and tourism closely and increasingly linked, these two sectors can be combined to achieve faster development through air service development processes, highlighted Shanzhong Zhu, executive director, UNWTO in a keynote address during the World Routes Tourism Summit in Chengdu, China.
“Improving air connectivity, especially by opening new routes that give access to previously remote areas, is an effective way of injecting resources to the regions that need it the most. This also assures long-term growth for aviation and tourism, giving opportunities for all those involved in the tourism value chain,” he said.
With all this information at hand stakeholders can then make more informed decisions and foresee the repercussions of actions in these sectors, and choosing a sustainable direction to work.
“Through Air Service Development we can analyse, plan and implement how we want tourism and air transport to have effects and in which territories,” said Zhu. “We can pick any destination and introduce new routes and flights, improving its air access and connectivity.”
Through these processes the local economy will also benefit from the increase in tourism, since there will be revenues not only for the aviation sector, explained Zhu
“Hotels, restaurants, tourist guides and many other providers will see an increase in the demand for their services, thanks to the higher number of visitors. With proper management of these sectors we can consciously maximise the impact they have on employment, inclusive growth and sustainable development,” he added.
But, Zhu insisted that in order to take full advantage of the socio-economic benefits that tourism and air transport may bring, both sides “must cooperate towards a stronger, integrated position on inter-sectorial issues”.
This is where tourism authorities come into play. “They must work in closer partnership with airports, attracting new carriers, opening new routes. We are increasingly seeing that relationships between airlines, airports and tourism authorities are of great importance for the development of tourism and air transport,” he added.
Tourism is one of the key drivers of the international economy: it contributes 10% to global GDP, and is responsible for 1 in 11 jobs worldwide. It is a very important socio-economic sector that plays a crucial role for an increasing number of countries. It serves as a fundamental contributor to economic recovery by generating billions of dollars and creating millions of jobs. It also helps the less advanced economies to have a faster development.
Last year, the number of international arrivals reached a total of 1.186 billion, an increase of 52 million over 2014 and international tourism receipts was $1.5 trillion dollars. “Tourism is an essential component of export diversification these days, both for emerging and advanced economies, since it represents a 30% of all service exports,” said Zhu.
Tourism has grown faster than world trade over the past four years. In Asia and the Pacific the number of international inbound tourists has grown at a 6% over 2015, reaching 279 million. As for China, it is the second largest tourism earner with $114 billion, and is fourth in international arrivals with 57 million.
According to UNWTO’s long-term forecast, at this growth rate 1.8 billion tourists will be travelling the world by the year 2030. China, the leader of global outbound travel, had 128 million outbound travelers in 2015, 10% more than the previous year and expenditure increased by 26% in the same period, reaching $292 billion.
Related Content
