from DION HENRICK in Cape Town
Western Cape Bureau
CAPE TOWN, (CAJ News) – THE global sector has come together to celebrate World Tourism Day, around the theme, “Tourism and Green Investments.”
World Tourism Organisation (WTO) member states are marking the occasion in every region through a range of special events and programmes.
“Tourism has never been more important for our economies or for our societies. Its potential is enormous,” WTO Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, said.
“And so on this World Tourism Day, we celebrate tourism’s ability to drive growth while also highlighting the vital need for investments to ensure such growth is inclusive and sustainable,” Pololikashvili said.
On World Tourism Day, WTO is placing emphasis on Tourism and Green Investments. The day focuses on the importance of “investment for people, for the planet and for prosperity.
At the main ceremony in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, WTO welcomed representatives from more than 100 of its member states, including more than 50 Ministers of Tourism.
The first World Tourism Day was held in 1980.
Marked yearly on September 27, it offers a chance to celebrate the sector’s vital role in advancing peace and prosperity and WTO’s global regions take turns in hosting the official celebrations, always around a timely and relevant theme.
The date marks the day the Statutes of the Organization that became WTO were signed.
– CAJ News