It was at its third session (Torremolinos, Spain, September 1979), that the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UNUNWTO) decided to institute, commencing in the year 1980.
WORLD TOURISM DAY is commemorated on 27 September each year by appropriate events on themes selected by the General Assembly, on recommendation of UNWTO's Executive Council. This date was chosen to coincide with an important milestone in world tourism: the anniversary of the adoption of the UNWTO Statutes on 27 September 1970.
The main purpose of World Tourism Day is to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values.
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"Tourism opens doors for women" - the theme for the United Nations World Tourism Day
on 27 September highlights an issue of fundamental importance for our future. Tourism is a sector
of the economy that not only employs significant numbers of women, but provides enormous
opportunities for their advancement.
The development of women's role not only gives a society balance, but it strengthens
economies and social structures. The challenges now revolve around issues like ensuring income
parity, raising employment quality, creating reasonable workplace conditions and penetrating glass
ceilings – issues which are relevant generally to Millennium Development Goal 3 and gender
equality.
- Francesco Frangialli, Secretary-General, UNWTO
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 | "Responding to the Challenge of Climate Change"
The focus on climate change and the broader development agenda coincides with worldwide support of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The theme will contribute in putting forward the global campaign to implement the Davos Declaration (Climate Change and Tourism - Responding top Global Challenges), and builds on the tourism sector's strong relationship with climate as well as its role in sustainable development.
2008
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World Tourism Day themes since 2000:
- 2000 - Technology and nature: two challenges for tourism at the dawn of the twenty-first century
- 2001 - Tourism: a toll for peace and dialogue among civilizations
- 2002 - Ecotourism, the key to sustainable development
- 2003 - Tourism: a driving force for poverty alleviation, job creation and social harmony
- 2004 - Sport and tourism: two living forces for mutual understanding, culture and the development of societies
- 2005 - Travel and transport: from the imaginary of Jules Verne to the reality of the 21st century
- 2006 - Tourism Enriches
- 2007 - Tourism opens doors for women
Additional Resources:
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GDRC has been working on themes related to sustainable tourism, in its programme on Urban Environmental Management.
GDRC therefore reaffirms its committment to uphold the objectives of the World Tourism Day, and work towards better understanding of, and action on, highliting the criticality of tourism management for better gender equality and poverty alleviation. |
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