World Tourism Day marked

​World Tourism Day is marked on 27 September and this year's theme is "Tourism and Peace", with the message that tourism is an instrument for peace, understanding and friendship.

On this occasion, the United Nations specialised agency UN Tourism is holding a conference in Tbilisi, Georgia where tourism leaders from around the world will discuss tourism as a catalyst for fostering peace, understanding and reconciliation between nations and cultures.

"Tourism is clearly linked to the building blocks of peace, such as social justice, human rights, economic equity, sustainable development, and broad-based democracy with the capability of non-violent conflict resolution," UN Tourism said.

"Tourism has the potential to contribute to peace in many ways and these need to be appropriately explored and assessed. Tourism as an instrument for peace needs to be peace-sensitive and needs to be understood from both the suppliers and consumer´s side, not as an isolated peace strategy, but as part of social transformation towards a culture of peace," it added.

"Tourism provides a fertile ground for innovation and entrepreneurship. By encouraging creative solutions and new business models, tourism can drive economic growth and provide unique opportunities for young talent. Supporting entrepreneurial initiatives in tourism can lead to sustainable development and create platforms for innovative peacebuilding strategies. The future of tourism lies in the hands of young people. By investing in youth, providing education and training opportunities, and encouraging their active participation in the tourism sector, we can harness their potential to drive social change and promote peace. Young talent brings fresh perspectives, creativity, and energy that are essential for the continuous evolution of tourism as a force for good," the UN agency said.

In Croatia, the World Tourism Day is also traditionally marked in many destinations with various events, professional gatherings and entertainment programs for tourists and citizens.

On this occasion, Tourism and Sport Minister Tonči Glavina told Hina he is glad that on this day "we can to talk about so many positive things happening in our tourism," especially while popular European tourist destinations are facing major problems, from over-tourism and local protests to declining tourist traffic.

"We can all be very satisfied with the present indicators. We are seeing growth in both the pre- and post-season, and in the summer months the figures are still acceptable in the context of sustainability. In addition, total traffic increases throughout the year, as well as the quality of the offer in the pre- and post-season and the financial results. All this will result in us having another record-breaking tourist year, while implementing a major tourism reform," Glavina said.

(Hina)

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