UNWTO leads development of Silk Road Tourism
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A meeting of Tourism Ministers have agreed to collaborate towards advancing tourism development across 25 countries, including Pakistan, in the Silk Road region. The agreement came at the first UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Silk Road Ministers’ Summit, held at ITB 2011.
“This is an exciting period in the development of Silk Road tourism,” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai. “The Silk Road is a powerful brand for leveraging continued tourism growth in Asia and the Middle East, while utilising online technologies and social media. Nevertheless, there are still many barriers to be overcome as we work towards our objectives, including improved travel facilitation for tourists.”
At the summit last week, the UNWTO highlighted the importance of promoting a consistent and cohesive Silk Road brand identity across destinations. The results of preliminary online market research were revealed showing the Silk Road as the world’s most searched and sought after international travel route. UNWTO also introduced a web initiative which it has been developing with TripAdvisor, designed to promote all of the Silk Road destinations on one unique, informative, and interactive online platform.
Ministers, vice ministers, and ambassadors from over 25 countries participated in the summit, sharing their views and experiences on how they could benefit from cooperating with other destinations to drive development through the Silk Road brand. Tour operators urged the destinations to consider the importance of increasing accessibility, tourism infrastructure, and the development of a reliable product.
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