The European Tourism Manifesto Alliance has now launched a new initiative to urge European policy makers to re-open their borders, and by extension the tourism industry in the EU, according to an announcement published by the European Travel Commission (ETC).
The new initiative is called #Tourism4Recovery. The purpose of the hashtag and the campaign is to raise awareness of the devastating impact that governments’ responses to COVID-19 have had on the travel and tourism industry, both in Europe and globally.
The Tourism Manifesto states clearly that the Recovery and Resilience Facility implemented by the EU is a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” to reset and rebuild the European travel industry into a more “sustainable, inclusive, resilient, and innovative” industry.
Along with the #Tourism4Recovery initiative, the Tourism Manifesto has also published specific recommendations on how to use the hashtag and frame the movement in order to apply the proper pressure on lawmakers.
At the same time, the Tourism Manifesto recently published a report outlining why policy makers should re-open their borders and allow the tourism industry to operate, as well as specific recommendations for them in order to help them find viable solutions.
According to the report, the reasons why governments should reform their policy for tourism and travel include:
- Until March 2020, the travel and tourism sector was healthy and expanding, experiencing steady growth for more than 60 years.
- In the EU, the sector accounts for 9.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employs more than 22.6 million people, and has a direct impact on the transport, retail, and agro-food industries, as well as the larger economy as a whole.
- Every €1 generated by the industry produces 56 cents of added value indirectly on other industries.
- Europe is the top global travel destination and represents more than half of the global tourism market share.
- It is estimated that cultural tourism accounts for 40% of all European tourism.
- Europe is a mature business travel market and is one of the top business travel markets in the world. This has a spill-over effect into other industries as well.
- Europe has more exhibitions than any other region, with most trade fairs being held in one or more European country.
The Tourism Manifesto’s report also outlines several areas of investment that will be key in achieving Europe’s long-term goals for travel and tourism:
- Power Up: Investing making tourism destinations more environmentally sustainable and less wasteful.
- Renovate: Supporting the smart management of social, cultural, environmental, and economic impacts of tourism, as well as ensuring that it is a sustainable source of prosperity, creativity, and social innovation.
- Recharge and Refuel: Accelerating the use of smart, sustainable, accessible, and multimodal transport by promoting future green technologies.
- Connect: Making the rollout of high-speed broadband to all areas, households, and businesses possible, including 5G networks.
- Modernize: Using digital tools to empower public authorities, destinations, and SMEs across the travel and tourism sector.
- Scale-Up: Develop and implement a tourism data strategy that will enable public authorities to gather and access reliable data for adequate and sustainable tourism management.
The Tourism Manifesto’s report also highlights many policy reforms, including promoting public and private partnerships, encouraging the development of year-round tourism, encouraging geographically diversified tourism, and implementing the basic principles of the Barcelona Declaration on Tourism and Cultural Heritage. Both the ETC and the European Tourism Manifesto are organizations that work closely together to advocate to governments for businesses and individuals that depend on the travel and tourism industry. These are the leading two organizations of their nature in Europe.
