Starting today, Union Ministry of Tourismis hosting the first congregation of G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting at a three-day (February 7-9) event at Gujarat’s Rann of Kutch. Two side events focusing on rural tourism and promotion of Archaeological Tourism would be the highlights of three-day event.
According to Arvind Singh, Secretary – Ministry of Tourism, Government of India (MoT, GoI), the meeting is being attended by more than 100 delegates and representatives of Tourism Sector of G20 countries. They include senior delegates from G20 member countries, invitee countries and international organizations.
According to Singh, during the year-long G20 Presidency, MoT has lined up number of events engaging not only the government level stakeholders but also the travel trade and hospitality sector. The Ministry would be organizing the first Global Tourism Investors’ Summit (GTIS) in April/May 2023 in New Delhi.
The objective of GTIS is to attract global investment into the Indian tourism and hospitality sector along with investments in tourism infrastructure, technology, skill development, startups and more.
G20 CEO Forum alongside the Ministerial Meeting will be held at Goa in June. The event is being organized by World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and WTTC (India initiative). The Ministry of Tourism will also be organizing a MICE Global Conference and event on adventure tourism in May and June respectively later this year.
Five priority areas in the tourism sector have been identified during India’s G-20 Presidency, which will constitute the key building blocks for accelerating the transition of the tourism sector and will achieve the targets for 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
The five priority areas are:
Green Tourism: Greening of tourism sector for a sustainable, responsible and resilient tourism sector
Digitalization: Harnessing the power of digitalization to promote competitiveness, inclusion and sustainability in tourism sector
Skills: Empowering youth with skills for jobs and entrepreneurship in tourism sector
Tourism MSMEs: Nurturing tourism MSMEs / Startups/ private sector to unleash innovation and dynamism in tourism sector
Destination Management: Rethinking the strategic management of destinations towards a holistic approach that delivers on the SDGs
Along with Minister of Tourism, Culture and DONER G. Kishan Reddy, the meeting is also being attended by Union Minister Parshottam Rupala, Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Bhai Patel.
