February 17th Declared the Annual Global Tourism Resilience Day

Every year, February 17th will be recognized as Global Tourism Resilience day. Its celebrations begin in this month.

In an effort to ensure the sustainability of tourism, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution from Jamaica.

More than 90 countries supported the initiative to mark the occasion annually.

“The pandemic has shown us that global disruptions will continue, so there will be more epidemics, pandemics and earthquakes like the one in Turkey. The importance of this day is therefore to encourage capacity-building for the world to be better able to respond to these global disruptions and recover quickly,” said Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica's Minister of Tourism.

The assembly observed a minute silence at the start of the meeting for all those affected by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

While tourism is one of the largest economic sectors in the world, it's also one the most vulnerable.

These last years have demonstrated that, despite a desire to travel the world, the tourism industry is still vulnerable. It must be resilient to weather all kinds of disasters, including hurricanes, armed conflict, volcanic eruptions, and pandemics.

"This announcement will in fact signal to the world to put aside one day, February 17, every year to not just observe, but also create a greater level of consciousness around resilience," Bartlett mentioned.

"If we are to future-proof the sustainability of tourism, now is the time to give greater consideration for building resilience."

The UNGA invites all to observe February 17, which is a day for raising awareness about sustainable tourism in accordance to local, regional, and national priorities. Education, activities, and events are some of the ways that they encourage this.

On February 15, Jamaica will host the first Global Tourism Resilience Conference, culminating in Global Tourism Resilience Day.

Source: thenationalnews.com