UNifeed: UN / GLOBAL TRAVEL

UN / GLOBAL TRAVEL

Tourism leaders from 142 countries met to endorse a roadmap for recovery in a bid to boost global travel. This comes as the industry faces one of the worst slumps in modern history. UNWTO

Duration:02:17Date:06 October 2009

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Full Script

STORY: UNWTO / ROADMAP FOR RECOVERY  
TRT: 2:17
SOURCE: UNWTO
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 6 OCTOBER 2009, ASTANA, KAZAKHSTAN

SHOTLIST:

5 OCTOBER 2009, ASTANA, KAZAKHSTAN

1. Wide shot, exterior, Palace of Peace and Concord, Astana.
2. Wide shot, Palace of Independence
3. Wide shot, exterior and flag on top of Palace of Independence
4. Close up, UNWTO banner, General Assembly 
5. Wide shot, exterior and flag on top of Palace of Independence
6. Wide shot, General Assembly 
7. Close up, General Assembly

6 OCTOBER 2009, ASTANA, KAZAKHSTAN

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Taleb Rifai, Secretary General ad interim, United Nations World Tourism Organization.
“We’re addressing world leaders and decision makers, heads of state and prime ministers, ministers of finance, trying to highlight the importance of tourism in facts and figures and in principles and statements that could stick in to their minds so a major challenge of rolling it out would be promotion.”

5 OCTOBER 2009, ASTANA, KAZAKHSTAN

9. Wide shot, General Assembly
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Geoffrey Lipman, Assistant Secretary General, United Nations World Tourism Organization. 
“The message is that our sector can make significant contribution to the international efforts to sustain and stimulate global recovery and ultimately to move to the green economy.”
11. Wide shot, General Assembly 
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Zoheir Garranah, Minister of Tourism, chairman of the UNWTO Resilience Committee, Egypt:
“Together we call on world leaders and the governments of our respective nations to include tourism in their stimulus packages. And our collective voice gains strength from the facts and figures that show just how much tourism more than any other industry contributes to job creation, enhances livelihoods, preserves communities, acts as a stimulus for economic recovery and constitutes an integral part of building the new green economy.”

13. Wide shot, audience and Egyptian minister on stage
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Zoheir Garranah, Minister of Tourism, chairman of the UNWTO Resilience Committee, Egypt:
“Let’s not forget that tourism in many countries is still not acknowledged as the key job creator; Leading export earner and major contributor to the Millennium Development Goals. Together we have to seek new ways to communicate the message more effectively.”
15. Med shot, General Assembly
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Zoheir Garranah, Minister of Tourism, chairman of the UNWTO Resilience Committee, Egypt:
 “International tourism arrivals and receipts are lower than initially from UNWTO forecast for all regions, with the exception of Africa.”
17. Wide shot, General Assembly

STORYLINE:

Tourism leaders from one hundred and forty two countries met to endorse a roadmap for recovery in a bid to boost global travel. This comes as the industry faces the worst slump in modern history.

The initiative from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is being launched, as seven hundred people gather for the 18th session of the global tourism body’s General Assembly in Astana, Kazakhstan

At the event fifty three tourism ministers or representatives endorsed the roadmap for recovery. The initiative calls on world leaders to prioritize tourism in the economic agenda and use it as a vehicle to create and sustain jobs. There is also a push to capitalize on the growing green economy.

UNWTO data shows some moderation in declining international arrivals for the first half of this year. In addition, the tourism body’s panel of experts is seeing stronger confidence in the marketplace.

International arrivals declined by four per cent in July this year, a relative improvement when compared to decreases of ten per cent in May and seven per cent in June.

To date, over seventy countries have already implemented measures to stimulate tourism, now the UNWTO is calling on world leaders to prioritize tourism and embrace its roadmap for recovery.

Tourism provides more than seventy five million jobs globally; thirty percent of the world’s exports, which is equivalent to one trillion dollars a year and accounts for up to forty five percent of the total exports of services in developing countries.

A sharp reduction in business activity, disposable income and a rise in unemployment, particularly in key source markets have hit tourism hard this year.

"Tourism is among the major socio-economic phenomena of our times, and rightly occupies an important place on the United Nations agenda,” said UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon in a message presented to the assembly.

“Efforts to make tourism more sustainable can help the world address climate change, achieve the Millennium Development Goals and build a greener economy.”
 
While global earnings from the sector has been suffering slightly more than arrivals, as consumers trade down, stay closer to home and travel for shorter periods.

Recommendations made by the UNWTO such as travel facilitation, tax rebates or credits have already been employed by many countries.

“This sector ensures a significant inflow of foreign investment, creates work, and helps economic revival in many countries and regions of the world,” said the president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev at the official opening at the Palace of Peace and Concord in Astana.

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