UNWTO Regional Support
Office for Asia and the Pacific

UNWTO’s Role in
Recovery in COVID-19
in Asia and the PacificFuture Tourism
Leaders Workshop
2021
Symposium Presentation

16 March 2021

Introduction

COVID-19 Impact/Tourism Statistics

COVID-19 Recovery

Briefing Notes

Asia Pacific Support

Introduction
UNWTO/ RSOAP

160

Member States

6
Associate Members
500+ Affiliate Members

UNWTO promotes tourism as a driver of
economic growth, inclusive development andenvironmental
sustainability
andoffers
leadership and support to the sector inadvancing knowledge and tourism policies
worldwide.

UNWTO Areas of Work

SustainableDevelopment

Innovation & DigitalTransformation• Biodiversity• Climate Change• INSTO• Global Plastics
Initiative• One Planet

Competitiveness• Market Intelligence• Policy & Destination
Management• Product Development• Innovation Projects• Investment Strategy• Tourism Startup
Competitions• UNWTO Challenges

Ethics Culture & Social
Responsibility

Statistics

UNWTO Academy• Methodology• Standards• Data• Courses, Webinar,Resources• TedQual• GCET• Accessibility• Tourism & Culture

The UNWTO Regional Support Office for Asia andthe Pacific supports the efforts of UNWTO andpromotes sustainable policies and practices among
Asia-Pacific Members.

UNWTO RSOAP Activities
Hosting Symposiums

Participating in Meetings & Webinars

Future Tourism Leaders Workshop

Conducting Presentations

UNWTO RSOAP Research
Sustainable Tourism Product Development Opportunities in thePacific Islands
This research aims to provide knowledge,
recommendations and case studies onsynergies between tourism growth and tourism
product development in Pacific Islands
Countries (PIs). It will serve as a tool to:

PICS Featured
Federated States of Micronesia

Best Practice Cases
Federated States of Micronesia andNiueFijiPapua New Guinea and Singapore

French Polynesia

Palau and New Zealand

Kiribati

New Zealand

Niue

Australia, Cook Islands and Vanuatu

Papua New Guinea

Japan and New ZealandSamoaFiji, Hawaii, Japan and New Zealand

Solomon Islands

Fiji and Papua New Guinea

Timor Leste

Japan, Malaysia and New Zealand

TuvaluJapanVanuatu

Cook Islands and Japana) analyze current efforts of tourism productdevelopment in Pacific Island states,b)identify
opportunities
forproductdevelopment and make recommendations that
promote local entrepreneurship initiatives andcommunity engagement in Pacific Island
States;c) provide good practice scenarios from acrossthe region and other island states, and lessons
learned from them;d) encourage intraregional collaboration andbenchmarking
amongPacificIslanddestinations.

COVID-19 Impact/TourismStatistics

Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/ 2020

Source: UNWTO
Dashboard, 2021

Recovery Scenarios

UNWTO GLOBAL TOURISMDASHBOARD
2020•

Tourism results – Region / Country

MONTHLY - YTD•

Change int, tourist arrivals - Change- in
relative and absolute terms

RECOVERY TRACKER•

Covers key performance indicators for areal time comparison of sector recovery
across the world and industries

TOP 10 DESTINATIONS•Most vulnerable destinations

COVID-19•

Countries with most reported COVID-19
cases- Share of tourism

IMPACT•

https://www.unwto.org/international-tourism-and-covid-19

Assessment of COVID-19 on
International tourism Impact of previous
crises in international tourism

https://www.unwto.org/unwto-tourism-dashboard

Source: UNWTO Barometer, October 2020

Source: UNWTO
Barometer, October 2020

COVID-19 Recovery
Initiatives

Protection ofLivelihoods

BoostCompetitiveness& Build
Resilience

Innovation &Digitalization

Sustainable &Inclusive Green
GrowthCoordination &Partnerships

• The Package includes a comprehensive list of technical assistanceactivities, both of a longer duration with a wide scope, and of a shortduration with a specific focus.
• Depending on the situation in a country, different technical assistanceactivities at various stages of the COVID-19 mitigation and recovery
process may be needed.

Briefing Notes

1. How arecountries
supporting tourism
recovery ?

2. Tourism in SIDS:
the challenge ofsustaining
livelihoods in timesof COVID-19

3. Understanding
domestic tourism
and seizing its
opportunities ?

Overview of Policy Responses

FiscalMonetary

MarketIntelligenceJobs & Skills

Public PrivatePartnershipKey Findings•Tourism is a socio-economic pillar of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and theCOVID-19 crisis risks devastating their economies.
Tourism accounts for over 30% of total exports in the majority of SIDS, reaching as
much as 80% in some.
Such a major shock translates into a massive loss of jobs, a sharp decline in foreignexchange and tax revenues which curbs public spending capacity and ability to
deploy the measures necessary to support livelihoods through the crisis.
Many SIDS have deployed measures to sustain businesses and jobs, often supported
by international and regional institutions yet more support is urgent.
The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs estimates that SIDS
economies could shrink by 4.7% in 2020 as compared to 3% for the world economy.
SIDS require thus an extraordinary international programme to counter thedevastating impact of COVID-19 on tourism, their economies and livelihoods.

••••

•

Policies to Mitigate the Impact, accelerate recovery & build resilience•SMEs, self-employed and job protection.

•Fiscal relief and financial support to SMEs and self-employed workers•Measures to restart tourism•

Supported by international and regional institutions

Domestic Tourism Initiatives Possible Checklist
1. Financial Incentives• Vouchers• Fiscal incentives• ‘Long Weekends’• Financial Support to Industry

2. Marketing & Promotion• New domestic campaigns• Digital Focused campaigns• Promotion on travel restrictions & safety measures

3. Product Development• Related to nature & outdoor

4. Public Private Partnership• With Government Agencies• With Provincial Governments/Association• With Private Sector

5. Market Intelligence• Forecasting & Market Insights• INSTO

6. Capacity Building/Training• Online training platforms• Training initiatives

Asia Pacific Support

Source: UNWTO Dashboard, 2021

Source: UNWTO, 2020

UNWTO Regional Support Office for
Asia and the PacificInitiatives and Activities in response to the COVID-19
1

Evidence Based Sustainable Tourism Management
Guidelines•

From researching good practices of UNWTO Sustainable
Tourism Observatories to promote sustainable tourism in Asiaand the Pacific•

2Output: Symposium in Tokyo; December 21st , 2020
Tourism Crisis Management Guidelines•

From collecting, analyzing and organizing good practices onbasic elements of tourism crisis management•

Output: Webinar; February 15th, 2021

Alcinda Trawen
atrawen@unwto-ap.org
UNWTO Regional Support Office for Asia and the Pacific