World Tourism Day 2013 is being held under the theme –

Tourism and Water: Protecting our Common Future

 

Tourism has experienced continued growth and deeper diversification to become one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world. ‎Modern tourism is closely linked to development and includes more new destinations for tourists. These dynamics turned tourism into a key driver for socio-‎economic progress.‎ Tourism has become one of the major players in ‎international commerce, and represents at the same time one of the main income ‎sources for many developing countries.

The UNWTO decided in late September 1979 to institute World Tourism Day (WTD), which was first celebrated on September 27, 1980. This date was chosen for World Tourism Day because that date coincided with an important milestone in world tourism: the anniversary of the adoption of the UNWTO Statutes on September 27, 1970.

The UNWTO believes that the date for World Tourism Day is appropriate because it comes at the end of the high tourist season in the northern hemisphere and the start of the tourist season in the southern hemisphere, when tourism is of topical interest to many people worldwide, particularly travellers and those working in the tourism sector.

The UNWTO invites people worldwide to participate in World Tourism Day on September 27 every year. The UNWTO Secretary-General annually sends out a message to the general public to mark the occasion. Many tourism enterprises and organizations, as well as government agencies with a special interest in tourism, celebrate the event with various special events and festivities.

UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai in his official WTD 2013 message said, “As one of the largest economic sectors in the world, it is the responsibility of the tourism sector to take a leadership role and ensure companies and destinations invest in adequate water management throughout the value chain.” He said, “If managed sustainably, tourism can bring benefits to the national and local communities and support water preservation”. He urged all those involved in the tourism sector to join the World Tourism Day campaign and continue to devise and innovate solutions to ensure sustainable access to water resources worldwide.

Different types of competitions, such as photo competitions promoting tourism, as well as tourism award presentations in areas such as ecotourism, are held on World Tourism Day. Other activities include free entries, discounts or special offers for the general public to any site of tourism interest. Government and community leaders, as tourism business representatives, may make public announcements or offer special tours or fares to promote both their region and World Tourism Day on or around September 27. The World Tourism Day is a UN observance and it is not a public holiday.

The purpose of this day is to raise awareness on the role of tourism within the international community and demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide.

In support of United Nations International Year of Water Cooperation, World Tourism Day 2013 is being held under the theme Tourism and Water: Protecting our Common Future.

This year’s theme highlights tourism’s role in water access and shines a spotlight on the actions currently being taken by the sector in order to contribute to a more sustainable water future, as well as the challenges ahead. Centred on the theme, World Tourism Day 2013 will underline tourism´s responsibility and required commitment to preserving the world´s vital water resources. The theme is in line with the UN General Assembly’s declaration of 2013 as the United Nations International Year of Water Cooperation, providing the opportunity to further highlight the shared responsibility of the tourism sector with the wider sustainability objectives.

As a trillion dollar economic sector, tourism is a powerful force capable of tackling this challenge by offering effective solutions geared towards a more sustainable water future. With over one billion people travelling internationally each year, tourism can also be an important vehicle for raising awareness and changing behaviours.

The WTD is a thematic event held every year on September 27, underscoring the socio-economic impact of tourism. The Republic of Maldives, one of the world’s most biologically diverse countries and a major tourism destination, will host the 2013 official World Tourism Day celebrations.

On the occasion of this year’s celebrations, UNWTO is organizing the first-ever WTD essay competition. Considering water both as a tourism resource and an asset, the essay should stress the importance of water planning and sustainable management as a powerful instrument for tourism development and green growth in the tourism sector. The essay targets a wide audience and is expected to be easy and engaging to read. At the same time, its findings have to be based on verifiable quality research, data, solid arguments and factual content in order to meet the general quality standards and UNWTO criteria.

Cardinal Antonio Maria Veglio, president of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, published a message regarding the celebration of World Tourism Day.

“The Holy See also wishes to join in this commemoration, bringing its contribution from its own perspective, aware of the importance of the phenomenon of tourism at the present time and the challenges and opportunities it provides to our mission of evangelization,” Cardinal Veglio wrote. “This is one of the economic sectors with the largest and fastest growth in the world. We must not forget that last year it had exceeded the milestone of one billion international tourists to which we must add the even higher figures of local tourism.”

Emphasizing the importance of water as both an “asset and a resource”, Cardinal Veglio stated that this year’s theme invites tourists to promote ecotourism, which would aid in promoting jobs and supporting local economies.

“There is no doubt that tourism plays a fundamental role in preserving the environment, by being one of its great ally, but also a fierce enemy. If, for instance, in order to achieve a quick and easy economic profit, the tourism industry is allowed to pollute a place, this location will cease to be a popular destination for tourists,” Cardinal Veglio said.

Incidentally, the essay competition is just one event among a myriad of events planned to be organized to commemorate the most important date in the annual tourism calendar.