from AHMED MOOLA in Cairo, Egypt
Egypt Bureau
CAIRO, (CAJ News) – MORE than 700 businesses, destinations, civil society groups and countries have signed up to the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism.
This is a commitment to decarbonise, regenerate and measure in order to halve their carbon emissions by 2030 and reach Net-Zero by 2050 at the latest.
At the recent COP27 in Egypt, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) brought leading sector stakeholders together to share practical insights into accelerating the shift to greater sustainability and reaching Net-Zero.
The tourism sector used the occasion to set out its plans to achieve its climate action ambitions.
“One year after its launch, we are proud to see the way the Glasgow Declaration has inspired our sector into action,” said UNWTO Executive Director Zoritsa Urosevic.
“Unlocking finance and developing measurement frameworks will be critical to scaling-up our support and continue accelerating climate action for resilience,” Urosevic said.
Financial and United Nations institutions, in particular United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Bank Group and Development Bank of Latin America expressed readiness to support tourism destinations in their transformation towards more low-carbon, sustainable and resilient tourism models.
Mari Pangestu, Managing Director, Development Policy and Partnerships, World Bank Group, said achieving Net Zero by 2050 remains ambitious for tourism and more finance is needed.
“Investing in climate action in tourism is investing in green resilient and inclusive development,” Pangestu said.
– CAJ News