Now that Asia-Pacific’s travel and tourism industry has rebounded from the pandemic, the region’s next step is to transform for greater resilience and sustainability, opined UN Tourism secretary-general Zurab Pololikashvili said in his opening address at the 37th UN Tourism Joint Commission for East Asia and the Pacific (CAP) and South Asia (CSA) meeting in Jakarta on April 15.
The focus of the 37th CAP-CSA meeting is therefore on transformation, and key priorities for discussion include tourism investment, green investment, and the circular economy.
Pololikashvili said: “These priorities will lay the foundation for a more resilient and sustainable tourism sector by empowering youth through training and education.”
Coordinating minister for economic affairs in Indonesia, Airlangga Hartarto, acknowledged the current global economic uncertainties and underscored the timeliness of the meeting to mitigate potential impacts on the tourism sector. He highlighted Indonesia’s robust tourism performance in 2024, with global international tourist arrivals nearing pre-pandemic levels at around 1.4 billion.
Airlangga stated that tourism brings economic, social and cultural benefits, and urged meeting attendees to “use this event to collaborate, and discuss how tourism can promote economic growth, inclusivity, and preservation of the environment”.
He also emphasised Indonesia’s commitment to international cooperation as a means to navigate global challenges and foster shared prosperity
The Indonesia Tourism Guideline will launch as part of the meeting, and will serve as a reference for green investment in the country’s tourism sector.
37th CAP-CSA meeting spans two days and includes the 56th Meeting of CAP, the 60th Meeting of CSA, as well as a UN Tourism Regional Conference on April 16, focusing on tourism policies within the circular economy. The latter, facilitated by UN tourism experts, aims to provide valuable insights into global and regional trends in tourism investment and promote the sharing of best practices for sustainable development.
Commenting on the UN Tourism Regional Conference, Widiyanti Putri Wardhana, Indonesia minister of tourism, said it “aligns with the ministry’s priority development of sustainable tourism, and objective of advancing the blue, green and circular economy.”
