05/17/2023 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/17/2023 02:07
UNWTO has launched a new report to determine the status of rural tourism in its Member States and identify the main challenges and opportunities of tourism as a driver for rural development from a policy perspective.
"Tourism and Rural Development: A Policy Perspective - Results of the UNWTO Survey on Tourism for Rural Development to Member States" represents the first baseline document of UNWTO on tourism and rural development with the participation of Member States worldwide.
The UNWTO research also identified three main challenges associated with realizing the potential of tourism for rural development:
Other challenges include limitations in accessing financial systems, restrictions in the development of innovative tourism products in rural areas, managing the impacts of degradation of natural resources, and limitations in handling data, digitalization, and knowledge management.
In terms of how tourism can help in supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UNWTO Member States emphasized the potential of rural tourism for advancing SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 11 (Sustainable cities and communities) and SDG 5 (Gender Equality).
The report was launched during the 118th Session of the UNWTO Executive Council in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. It forms part of the work of UNWTO's Tourism for Rural Development Programme, established to develop initiatives and programmes to grow the sector in size and relevance as well as to monitor it in destinations worldwide.