At the Fourth International Conference for SIDS (Antigua and Barbuda, 27-30 May), UN Tourism joined government leaders and fellow UN agencies to identify a shared pathway towards resilient prosperity. The conference concluded with the adoption of the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAS), with tourism at its core.

Tourism and SIDS: A vital economic pillar

According to UN Tourism data, the SIDS received 36 million international tourist arrivals in 2023, representing 91% of pre-pandemic levels worldwide, meaning recovery rates outpaced the global figure of 89%. Although SIDS represent only 3% of all arrivals in the world, tourism is a life line in Small Islands Developing States SIDS where the sector accounts for 38% of all exports (excluding Singapore), going up to 85% in the cases of some countries.

There is nevertheless a pressing need to transition into a sustainable and resilient tourism model that places people and planet at the core. Localizing the supply chain to reduce leakages, de-risking investments and protecting biodiversity are fundamental for resilience, as outlined in the ABAS.

UN Tourism pledges support to SIDS

Both at the Plenary discussions and during the Interactive Dialogue on Revitalising SIDS Economies, UN Tourism’s Executive Director Zoritsa Urosevic expressed its commitment to support SIDS through ongoing initiatives and programmes. A call was made to support productive sectors (manufacturing, agrifood, fisheries, creative industries); prioritise local, formal job creation; develop social protection mechanisms; integrate circularity as a core business model; protect and restore ecosystems; support climate action; and explore innovative finance in connection with blue carbon.

Rethinking tourism policy and finance

UN Tourism organized a side-event on “Regenerative Tourism: Policy, Practice and Finance”, in connection with the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism. The Ministers of Tourism of Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Sint Marteen, as well as the local Ministry of Saint Kitts, presented their policies and practices. The Pacific Tourism Organization and the Caribbean Tourism Organization and experts from Sustainable Travel International, TUI Care Foundation and NOAH ReGen also took part in the discussions, especially addressing the need for collaboration and finance. The Ministry of Tourism of Antigua and Barbuda and the destination of Saint Kitts became signatories of the Glasgow Declaration.

In collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), International Monetary Fund (IMF), University of Oxford SDG Impact Lab, Catalytic Finance Foundation and Pegasus Capital Advisors, UN Tourism co-organized the virtual side-event "Better data for a better tourism in SIDS". The event highlighted the role of the Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism in providing guidance for more harmonized and meaningful metrics to measure tourism's impact, dependencies and growth ‘beyond GDP’ as well as the role of market intelligence on creating relevant knowledge for action, and the importance of measuring tourism projects and initiatives at all levels, by using tools such as Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through Tourism – Toolkit of Indicators for Projects (TIPs) or STAR - Self-assessment Tool to Assist Rural Destinations.

Discussions took also among UN Heads of Delegations regarding the implementation of ABAS and an inter-agency nexus dialogue on Tourism in SIDS titled “Advancing Sustainable Development of SIDS through Tourism: Fostering Sustainable and Circular Consumption and Production” was organized within the framework of the One Planet network involving FAO, ILO, UNDP, UNEP, UNFCCC and UN Tourism.

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About UN Tourism

The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.

As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.

Our Priorities

Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper.

Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all.

Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange.

Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members' competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management.

Advancing tourism's contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda.

Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector.

Our Structure

Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members.

Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly.

Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism's 500 plus Affiliate members.

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