UNWTO Silk Road Conference on Nomadic Tourism and Sustainable Cities held in Mongolia
ETW Staff – Mumbai
The UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), together with the Ministry of Environment and Tourism of Mongolia and the World Cities Scientific Development Alliance (WCSDA), organised the International Silk Road Conference on Nomadic Tourism and Sustainable Cities in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia recently.
The conference gathered ministers and high-level officials from nine UNWTO Silk Road Member States, official representatives from Silk Road regions, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and UNWTO Affiliate Members to address the potential of nomadic and sustainable city tourism. The event, officially opened by Enkhbold Miyegombo, chairman of the State Great Hural of Mongolia,, attracted over 350 delegates from 21 countries.
The Silk Road has become one of the most visited international travel routes. Despite such growth, an increase in visitation also brings challenges, such as the protection of the environment and the maintenance of necessary heritage standards. Bearing in mind the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) and the upcoming International Year for Sustainable Development for Tourism 2017, participants discussed these challenges and the large potential of developing nomadic tourism trails and products.
“The sustainable growth of nomadic tourism requires a balance between tourism promotion, heritage management and respect for local communities. It requires the collective engagement and cooperation of Silk Road destinations, the private sector and the civil society. With these ingredients in place, we can produce responsible nomadic tourism products to diversify Silk Road tourism and achieve the adequate tourism development for the countries involved.” said Taleb Rifai, secretary-general, UNWTO in opening the conference.
The Silk Road countries agreed that, while the Silk Road presents extensive opportunities, long-term success will depend upon increased collaboration in the three key areas identified in the Silk Road Action Plan: marketing and promotion, capacity building and destination management, and travel facilitation.