NEW DELHI: The G20 member nations have endorsed that the tourism sector is impacted by climate change, biodiversity and cultural losses and hence should be a driver for nature protection.
In the Outcome Document and Chair’s Summary of the G20 tourism ministerial meeting that concluded on Wednesday in Goa, the member nations recognised the need for tourism policies to advance sustainability in infrastructure and operations.
“The sustainable planning and management of tourism can be enhanced through adequate data and measurement, recognise the need to advance the measurement of tourism in its three dimensions – economic, social and environmental – and acknowledge the initiative towards a statistical framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism launched by United Nations World Tourism Organisation with the support of the United Nations Statistics Division,” the document read.
Five key priorities of the G20 tourism track, including green tourism, digitalisation and destination management, have been endorsed by all countries of the group for sustainable, resilient and inclusive growth in the sector, officials of the tourism ministry stated.
At the end of the meeting, a Goa Roadmap and Action Plan and a ministerial outcome document came out. About 130 delegates from countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, South Africa, Russia, Mauritius, Australia, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia, Nigeria, Oman, the Netherlands, Bangladesh, and top international organisations took part in the ministerial meeting. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a State visit in the US, greeted the delegates via a recorded video message.