Abstract:
While 2020 was not the year we expected it to be, it was a year during which people really came together. We saw our sector join forces to support our workforce and the local communities that host us. It is clear is that we are not going back to 2019; we are moving forward. Travel & Tourism will come out of this crisis stronger and better. But to do so, it is crucial we continue working together to achieve recovery both financially and socially. We need to be united. That is why we have chosen our theme for this year: Uniting the World for Recovery. By turning this crisis into an opportunity, we can make sure we become more inclusive and more sustainable. Our very presence here in Cancun, Mexico, with over 600 in-person participants and over 30,000 attendees joining us virtually from across the world, shows that we can resume international travelling once more, by observing the latest health and safety protocols, which WTTC has helped develop for businesses large and small throughout the sector. Indeed, this Global Summit is the world’s first major gathering of world Travel & Tourism leaders since the outbreak of the pandemic. As we accelerate our recovery, we need to redouble our efforts to remove barriers to mobility such as quarantines, focus on testing, and accelerate the vaccination rollout globally, while continuing to support health and safety protocols. Together and with a united front, both the private and public sectors in Travel & Tourism can drive change and get the world moving again so that we can continue travelling, exploring, and sharing experiences face-to-face. Together we can revive a sector which will generate the world’s economic recovery and bring people back together, maximising the amazing benefits that Travel & Tourism brings. Our sector is one that provides opportunities, reduces poverty, brings hope, and not only changes lives, but changes the world. This is the beginning of a new chapter, the beginning of the recovery. We have much work to do and only if we are united, we can change the lives of the millions that depend on us.
