This Year´s FITUR Put Another Feather in its Cap

More than one hundred high officials and managers from the tourism sector participated in the Knowledge Management for Excellence in Tourism Destination Governance seminar on January 26 during the Madrid-based FITUR. The seminar was organized by the UNWTO Department of Education and Knowledge Management.

The seminar was presided over by UNWTO Secretary General Francesco Frangialli, Ecuadorian Tourism Minister M. Isabel Salvador, Andorran Minister of Tourism and the Environment Antoni Puigdellivol Riberaygua, Mexican Undersecretary for Tourism Planning Oralia Rice, and Argentine Tourism Secretary Carlos Enrique Meyer, among other boldface names.

The seminar provided a forum for high officials of UNWTO Member State Tourism Administrations –from the national, regional, and local levels- to exchange views on the application of a key tourism policy tool: knowledge management.

During the sessions, several presentations highlighted WTO Knowledge Management programs applicable to destination governance, with special attention placed on the WTO´s Best Initiative. Other presentations featured concrete case studies and experiences from the past year, especially within Hispanic America.

The seminar also examined the issues of destination competitiveness and sustainability, positioning in increasingly complex national and international markets, instruments to manage resource conservation, client loyalty (quality), and efficiency of products and services (profitability).

This initiative, initiated by the Department of Education and Knowledge Management, responds to the commitment made by UNWTO during the recent General Assembly in Dakar to formally address destination-related issues (by creating the WTO Destination Council) and to establish activities, programs, and networks for collaboration among destinations.