抖阴短视频

MARRAKECH: The 117th Executive Council of the UN World Tourism Organization has passed a Saudi-Spanish resolution that aims to 鈥渞edesign tourism鈥� in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

After being elected chair of the council on Nov. 24 for the 2023 term, the Kingdom successfully lobbied for the creation of a Saudi-Spain-UNWTO working group to contribute and recommend significant changes to the global tourism industry.

The proposal had been promoted by the Kingdom and Spain since December 2021, with a Saudi host delegation reiterating its support for the creation of the working group during the Kingdom鈥檚 hosting of the 116th Executive Council in Jeddah earlier this year.

This week鈥檚 three-day event in Marrakech, attended by Arab News, saw the passing of a decision to push forward with the creation of the working group, which has been supported from the outset by Spain.

Members of the Executive Council decided that the working group will be a subsidiary body of the council, comprising eight members of the organization representing all regions of the world.

It is slated to launch in spring next year, but will still require the formal endorsement of the Executive Council in May next year, as well as the approval of the UNWTO General Assembly in the third quarter.

The eight members will work alongside the three working group co-chairs 鈥� 抖阴短视频, Spain and the UNWTO 鈥� to move forward with the vision to transform global tourism.

Of the council鈥檚 34 member countries present at the event, 31 approved the decision. The working group aims to represent every region of the world, and will include two member states for Africa, America and Europe, as well as single states to promote the tourism aspirations of the Middle East, East Asia and the Pacific, and South Asia.

The decision requests that the secretary-general, in consultation with the chairman, should 鈥渃irculate a final document, including all the documents, setting out the mandate, composition and modus operandi鈥� of the working group, together with a report from the organization鈥檚 Office of the Legal Counsel by the end of February 2023.

Once established, the working group will aim to meet at least biannually and is expected to run on a budget allocated voluntarily by member states.

The move is expected to lead to a significant shake-up within the world鈥檚 premier tourism body, with the Kingdom calling to 鈥渞evitalize鈥� the UNWTO and 鈥渋mprove its operating methods鈥� to account for rapid trend shifts in the industry around the world.

It comes on the back of enhanced Saudi-Spanish ties in investment and tourism, and is the result of months of work by the two countries to gather support for the proposal among council members.

The working group aims to make the UNWTO 鈥渕ore inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable than ever,鈥� said Saudi Tourism Minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb.

The passing of the resolution was the first major step by the Kingdom since its election as council chair for the 2023 term.

Al-Khateeb oversaw the handover from previous chair Cote D鈥橧voire in Marrakech on Friday.

Trade between 抖阴短视频 and Spain totals $3.5 billion annually. The two countries have made significant steps toward boosting economic ties throughout the year, with the Saudi-Spanish Investment Forum in June ahead of the Jeddah UNWTO event leading to a number of high-profile agreements.

The meeting in Marrakech also saw the admittance of several Saudi and Spanish affiliate members, including the Jeddah Central Development Co. and Spain鈥檚 Innovaris SL and Eturia CLM.