World Tourism Day 2021 – between gloomy prospects and hope

Tourism is acknowledged to have the potential to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Yet, as the ongoing pandemic has dealt a severe blow to tourism, the sector is facing serious challenges. In the first half of 2021 alone, international tourist arrivals declined by 85% in comparison to the same period in 2019 according to data revealed by the UN World Trade Organization. Despite this gloomy prospect, on 27 September the world marks World Tourism Day with the theme of “Tourism for Inclusive Growth” to highlight the industry’s importance in terms of sustainability and inclusiveness.

Tourism trends amid the pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic pushed countries into lockdowns and forced them to close their borders thereby seriously damaging international tourism. In 2020, one of the worst years for international tourism, the number of people traveling abroad for tourism purposes dropped by 73%. In terms of regional statistics, the largest fall was experienced by Asia and the Pacific with a 95% decline in international arrivals in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period in 2019. This is followed by Europe with an 85% decrease over the same period. The Middle East and Africa experienced an 83% and 81% fall, respectively while the least impacted region was the Americas with a 72% decline in international arrivals.

Talking about the impact of the pandemic on the tourism sector, António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, said:

“Tourism continues to suffer enormously under the COVID-19 pandemic: in the first five months of this year, international tourist arrivals decreased by a staggering 95 percent in parts of the world and forecasts suggest a loss of over $4 trillion to global GDP by the end of 2021. This is a major shock for developed economies, but for developing countries, it is an emergency.”

Grain of hope

Although countries have begun to reopen their borders, the recovery of the tourism sector is still uneven and fragile. However, domestic travel is already recovering in several destinations with bigger tourism markets. For example, domestic air seat capacity in China and Russia has already surpassed pre-pandemic levels.

These circumstances open up room for discussions concerning the issues related to all dimensions of tourism including its social and cultural aspects enabling policymakers and experts across the globe to deliberate the input that tourism can have towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

“On World Tourism Day, we recognize the power and potential of tourism to advance prosperity and drive inclusive, sustainable development. The tourism sector touches almost every part of our economies and societies, enabling historically marginalized people and those at risk of being left behind to benefit from development that is local and direct,” said António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations.

The forthcoming restart of tourism will support economies worldwide in their recovery. However, it is important to ensure that the benefits that tourism generates are shared among members of society inclusively. Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of the UNWTO noted:

“Today, we reaffirm our pledge that, as we move forward and work to build a more prosperous and peaceful world through tourism, we will not leave anyone behind.”