Role of the UNWTO within the Global Tourism Industry - Assignment Example

INTRODUCTION TO TOURISM Introduction Tourism is the act of an individual travelling to a particular destination for the purpose of leisure, business, visiting family or friends for a set duration of time. Tourism is also the provision of services and facilities to the individuals travelling to new destinations for a given duration of time. Individuals who enjoy the act of tourism are known as tourists. For tourism to take place an individual has to travel via a means of transportation; for example land, road, air, rail and ship transport (Coltman, 1989) Global organization within the tourism sector Tourism developed through time through the better development of the modes of transport, increase of wealth, better improvement and exciting ideas of services and facilities as well as the discovery of new destinations which were strategic locations as per the desired intention of the travel.it is one of the fastest growing economic activities globally. The development to tourism has led to employment opportunities and the increase of the economic well- being in various countries. United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is an agency of the international organization United Nations; it is the leading international organization in the global travel and tourism industry. It is involved in the better development of travel and tourism industry globally. This is by the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism to all individuals willing to travel to their destination sites. UNWTO comprises of 155 member states, 7 associate members, 2 permanent observers and over 400 affiliate members. The headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO secretariat led by the secretary general is composed of projects dealing with issues such as education, tourism and travel trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the tourism satellite account, destination management, ethics and risks and crisis management. These issues are keenly taken into consideration, and the appropriate measures taken so as to solve them correctly. Role of the organization within the GLOBAL tourism industry United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) works hand-in-hand with various United Nations bodies, private and government organizations in order to fully attain the objective of growth and development of the tourism industry and also attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). UNWTO member states are joined by a global cooperation of tourism organizations where there is the benefit of networking, interactions, business interaction, financial market incline, education and the promotion of universally accessible travel and tourism. UNWTO believes that international tourism is the key to development, prosperity and well- being of the world as this will help in the achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which works towards the eradication of poverty and the better development of countries supported by the United Nations. UNWTO creates market knowledge, supports the implementation of the Global Code of Ethics for tourism, offers leadership opportunities in support of the tourism sector and promotes tourism in regard to the improvement of the economic stability and the promotion of tourism and travel industry worldwide. UNWTO is based on six principal areas which include: competitiveness, poverty eradication, capacity building, partnerships, sustainability and mainstreaming. The six principal areas on focus aid in maintaining the main objective of the organization as the main objective influences tourism business worldwide positively (Hall, 2007) UNWTO improves travel and tourism competitiveness through market trends, statistics and crisis management. This organization aids tourism communities with up-to-date market intelligence on a regular basis. This includes; the latest tourism market trends, tourism forecasts short and long- term, knowledge on the specific market segments. This, therefore, provides relevant, accurate and timely information and thus strategies are developed on the improvement and maintenance of tourism and travel sector internationally. In the past, tourism and travel measurement was based on approximations from related areas of measurement, for example, migration or balance of payments statistics. In 2008, the United Nations approved the International Recommendations for Tourism Statistics 2008 (IRTS, 2008). The recommendations supplied the main ideas, definitions and classifications for the measurement of tourism and travel. This aided in the collection of basic statics, information and indicators about tourism activities globally. The United Nations approves of UNWTO as the main organization to collect, analyzes, interpret and publish the tourism statistics. UNWTO in turn, gathers statists globally and updates its database regularly on the information collected; this action is maintained so as to always give the correct and accurate information when needed. Therefore, global information regarding the tourism statistics can be obtained form the United Nations World Tourism Organization and this information can help any individual globally who wants to analyze the tourism market trends over a given period of time. In regard to 2009 during the 18th UNWTO general assembly, a road map for recovery to see the travel and tourism sector through the 2008- 2009 global economic crisis was approved. This approach was geared towards maintaining the tourism industry during the economic crisis that hit the world in that particular year. UNWTO works with government bodies involved in internal and external security. This is to ensure the security of tourists globally. UNWTO also makes up a part of the Tourism Emergency Response Network (TERN), which unites with other leading tourism associations in moments of crisis. Information is passed around, strategies are established in order to curb the crisis and common messages are passed round in order to contain the situation at-hand. An example of a crisis where Tourism Emergency Response Network (TERN) was involved is the H1N1 outbreak in 2009. UNWTO focuses also on tourism threat locations and tries in all ways to eradicate such issues so as to promote better tourism relations globally. This makes the world a safe place for tourists and local communities and thus the business of travel and tourism is well maintained. In order to promote sustainable tourism development, UNWTO keenly focuses on climate change, sustainability, biodiversity, ethics and the green economy. In regard to the problem of climatic change, this is mainly on the focus of global warming a serious concern worldwide, UNWTO works with private and public companies/ organizations in the implementation of measures so that individuals can adapt to the change of climate for the benefit of the tourism industry and poverty eradication. The measures implemented include; reduction of energy and educating the community on new technologies. UNWTO is committed to the Davos Declaration which emphasizes on tourism being at the forefront of the global response to climate change. In regard to the factor of sustainability and biodiversity, UNWTO implemented a global code of ethics for tourism which comprises of guides that travel and tourism stake holders use for the development of tourism. UNWTO also raises awareness to individuals on ethical issues linked to tourism including gender equity, child protection, women rights and cultural preservation. In 2010 government representatives globally, researchers and members of private sectors came up with the UNWTO Recommendations on Tourism and Biodiversity. These recommendations were focused on saving the world’s ecosystems in order to safeguard biodiversity. Tourism is comprised of biodiversity. This ranges from different species and ecosystems which make up the environment. Individuals mostly travel to various localities in order to view the different species of organisms that fascinate them, they may also travel to an ecosystem that may fascinate them; the action of travelling is tourism and in regard to the above context biodiversity has to be protected in order to maintain travel and tourism in individuals. UNWTO strives to maintain biodiversity by the set of principals implemented and this action influences tourism worldwide. In regard to matters concerning green economy, tourism has been identified in the green economy report and as per the report analysis; this would lead to the creation of employment, significant benefits to the environment, poverty reduction and increase of the economic stability. UNWTO in collaboration with government organizations and private organizations educate people worldwide on the advantages of the greening of tourism. A key message the UNWTO volunteers pass around in regard to the greening of tourism is the planning of destinations and development methods are the initial steps in the greening of tourism. The greening of tourism can help in reducing energy costs, water wastage, and carbon dioxide emission, enhance biodiversity, and maintain the cultural heritage of the tourist travel destinations and therefore tourism worldwide is maintained as one of the leading industries. (World tourism organization & United Nations environment program, 2008). Tourism has expanded considerably and diversified over the last six decades this is clearly seen by the increase of the numbers of new destinations all focuses on the tourism industry. This in turn makes tourism a key instrument in the socio-economic progress. This is displayed through the creation of employment, infrastructure development, businesses enterprises and the increase of the economic stability. Least developed or developing countries can increase their participation in the global economy through engaging in tourism. This makes tourism one of the largest and fastest growing economic sectors globally as novel destinations are being built along the older destinations, for example in Europe and North America . United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is an organization within the global travel and tourism industry and this organization influences tourism worldwide by achieving its set objectives, this is made possible by the policies set in regard to the areas of interest, providing training on tourism management, employment in tourism enterprises, collection and analysis of tourism related data which is done on a regular basis so as to have precise information, improving the quality of products and services within the tourism industry. In order for UNWTO to achieve its main objective which is to promote the tourism sector, member countries linked to this international organization are supported in all ways possible in order to maintain the set objectives. This is done through technical cooperation and the sustainable tourism eliminating poverty initiative; projects are set up around the world in order to assist the developing countries. UNWTO also aids in education and training which is extremely crucial for tourism development. UNWTO.Themis Foundation was set up so as to facilitate education and training concerning tourism. The foundation is based in Andorra. An individual from any member state is trained well By doing so, creation of employment is made possible. Training specialized related assessment is conducted and by doing so, the competitiveness and sustainability of the tourism industry is maintained. Priorities of this international organization include: mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda where the socio-economic status will be favored tremendously by voicing out the opinion of tourism being the main lead in the development of social and economic levels in various counties around the globe, improving tourism competitiveness by means of proper education and facilitation concerning tourism as well as the policy planning and implementation of areas in regard to the market trends as well as crisis management, building partnerships by the member states patterning together in order to work towards achieving the given set of goals internationally, advancing tourisms improvement to poverty reduction and development by the creation of jobs in the tourism sector in order to achieve the millennium development goals (Howell, 1993). According to the UNWTO Tourism highlights 2011 edition, international tourism increased substantially with international tourists arrivals up by 6.6% from 2009 to 940 million. Tourism industry is responsible for over 235 million employments worldwide and according to UNWTO forecasts, between 2010 and 2030 an additional 43 million international tourists will enter the marketplace annually and the international tourist arrivals will be at or exceed 1.8 billion by the year 2030. For the above estimates to be precise, the tourism sector must focus on the key areas which affect tourism. These areas include: environmental protection, economic growth and social welfare. As the leading organization in the tourism industry, UNWTO strives to reinforce strategies that affect tourism in a negative manner in order to maintain the tourism industry worldwide. UNWTO has a set of guidelines that is intended for the better development of the tourism sector. These guidelines are known as the Global Code of Ethics for tourism and they ensure the maximum benefit of tourists as well as governments and communities in the given tourist destination sites thus economic prosperity. Bibliography Books HOWELL, DAVID W. (1993). Passport: an introduction to the travel and tourism industry. 2nd ed. Cincinnati, Ohio: South-Western Pub. Co. COLTMAN, MICHAEL M. (1989). Introduction to travel and tourism: an international approach. New York, Van Nostrand Reinhold. Journals HALL, C. M. (2007). Pro-poor tourism: who benefits? : perspectives on tourism and poverty reduction. Clevedon, Channel View Publications. WORLD TOURISM ORGANIZATION, & UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME. (2008). Climate change and tourism: responding to global challenges. Madrid, World Tourism Organization. Read More