The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has unveiled its speakers for the upcoming Global Summit in Manila, Philippines which includes Indonesian/Dutch activist Melati Wijsen, the founder of Bye Bye Plastics—a global movement powered by youth around the world to end the use of plastic bags. WTTC’s 21st Global Summit will be held from April 20-22. Industry leaders will gather with over 20 government representatives, to continue aligning efforts to support the sector’s recovery and move beyond to a safer, more resilient, inclusive and sustainable future.
South Korean politician Ban Ki-Moon, who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016, will also address delegates virtually. The summit will include tourism ministers from Spain, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, Japan, Maldives and Barbados.
Other notable speakers at the summit will include international business leaders such as Arnold Donald, president and CEO, Carnival Corporation and chairman at WTTC; Greg O’Hara, founder and senior managing director, Certares and vice-chairman at WTTC; Craig Smith, group president, international division at Marriott International; Maria Anthonette Velasco-Allones, COO, Tourism Promotions Board, Philippines; Federico Gonzalez, CEO, Radisson; Nelson Boyce, head of travel for the Americas at Google Inc; Kelly Craighead, president and CEO, CLIA; Jane Sun, CEO, Trip.com; Ariane Gorin, president, Expedia for business; and Darrell Wade, chairman, Intrepid Group. More speakers will be announced over the coming weeks.
The WTTC Global Summit is taking place in the Philippines during a time when the country and the region begins to recover from the pandemic and will showcase the importance of travel and tourism in the region. WTTC’s recent research shows the forecast for Asia-Pacific could be its travel and tourism sector approaching pre-pandemic levels this year. According to the study, the sector’s contribution to the region’s GDP could reach $2.9 trillion, near pre-pandemic levels, while employment could reach over 190 million jobs, surpassing 2019 figures and providing an additional five million jobs to the sector. To reach close to pre-pandemic levels this year, WTTC says governments across the region and around the world must continue focusing on the vaccine and booster rollout – allowing fully vaccinated travelers to move freely without the need for testing.
For more information, visit www.wttc.org.
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