Our year of sustainable tourism development
The United Nations General Assembly declared 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development recalling the potential of tourism to advance the universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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The implication is that we have 12 months to celebrate and promote the contribution of the tourism sector to building a better world. This is the major goal of the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017 that started a few days ago.
The International Year aims to support a change in policies, business practices and consumer behaviour towards a more sustainable tourism sector than can contribute effectively to the SDGs.
As one can see there is a direct link to the new SDGs which wasn’t particularly the case for the previous Millennium Development Goals. A case which indirectly alienated tourism during discourses on the MDGs.
“This is a unique opportunity to build a more responsible and committed tourism sector that can capitalise its immense potential in terms of economic prosperity, social inclusion, peace and understanding, cultural and environmental preservation,” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.
If well managed the tourism sector can foster inclusive economic growth, social inclusiveness and the protection of cultural and natural assets.
Currently, it accounts for 7 per cent of worldwide exports, one in 11 jobs and 10 per cent of the world’s GDP. With this global declaration the International Year will promote tourism’s role in the following five key areas:
- Inclusive and sustainable economic growth;
- Social inclusiveness, employment and poverty reduction;
- Resource efficiency, environmental protection and climate change;
- Cultural values, diversity and heritage; and
- Mutual understanding, peace and security.
The official presentation of the International Year will take place in Madrid on January 18, 2017 on the occasion of the Spanish Tourism Fair, FITUR.
UNWTO invites all partners, including Ghana to join the celebrations by sharing their activities and initiatives to advance sustainable tourism for development. But before the ceremony let us all share in the understanding of the declaration.
What do we mean by Sustainable tourism development? This involves a model whose guidelines and management practices are applicable to all forms of tourism in all types of destinations, including mass tourism and the various niche tourism segments.
Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic, and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee its long-term sustainability.
Thus, sustainable tourism should:
- Make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute a key element in tourism development, maintaining essential ecological processes and helping to conserve natural heritage and biodiversity.
- Respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, conserve their built and living cultural heritage and traditional values, and contribute to inter-cultural understanding and tolerance.
- Ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning opportunities and social services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation.
Sustainable tourism development requires the informed participation of all relevant stakeholders, as well as strong political leadership to ensure wide participation and consensus building.
Achieving sustainable tourism is a continuous process and it requires constant monitoring of impacts, introducing the necessary preventive and/or corrective measures whenever necessary.
Sustainable tourism should also maintain a high level of tourist satisfaction and ensure a meaningful experience to the tourists, raising their awareness about sustainability issues and promoting sustainable tourism practices amongst them.
2017 is a unique opportunity for us to promote the contribution of tourism to achieving the future we want – and also to determine, together, the exact role we will have tourism play in the sustainable development agenda, to and beyond 2030.
Of course, many challenges remain for the industry but we can take inspiration from the words of UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai. He said tourism is a sector of hope.
Not only is it one of the most resilient economic sectors, but it also unites people across backgrounds, cultures and continents every day.
Through travel, we gain understanding, tolerance, and empathy for our fellow man – essential in the globalisation era, where our global village can only prosper through harmonious living.
The tremendous hope that our sector provides should inspire us all to act for the good of people and planet. Together we can be the change we want to see.
The writer is a Communication and Tourism Specialist. Books he has authored include ‘Romancing Ghanaland - the Beauty of Ten Regions’, Tickling the Ghanaian-Encounters with Contemporary Culture & ‘Harmattan- a Cultural Profile of Northern Ghana.’