UNWTO Wine Tourism Conference gathers experts from around the world
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), in collaboration with the Georgian National Tourism Administration, is organizing the 1st UNWTO Global Conference on Wine Tourism in the Kakheti wine region of Georgia on 7-9 September 2016.
“Georgia’s unique wine-making traditions date back 8,000 years and are considered by UNESCO as intangible heritage, making the country an ideal host for the Global Conference on Wine Tourism. The country’s recent success in attracting a growing number of tourists, and its development of tourism products, branding and marketing, combine to present an excellent platform for sharing best practices, experience and knowledge,” said Dimitry Kumsishvili, Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia.
“Wine tourism is a growing segment with immense opportunities to diversify demand. In the case of Georgia, the segment’s potential is well known and we are very pleased to be holding the first UNWTO Global Conference on Wine Tourism in the country”, added Taleb Rifai, UNWTO Secretary-General.
Gastronomy and wine have become key components of a culture and lifestyle experience of any destination, and a growing travel motivation. To foster the development of this segment, in September 2015 UNWTO launched the UNWTO Gastronomy Network.
In this context, UNWTO is currently developing a Wine Tourism Prototype in Spain. The Prototype includes an analysis of wine tourism, in comparison with other tourism segments, and the design of an innovative product development model focused on the integration of the wineries into the cultural, economic, social and environmental heritage of their area of influence. The final results of this project will be presented at the conference.
The Conference will have a unique and dynamic format with three sessions to be held in different wineries across the Georgian region of Kakheti.
Speakers at the conference will include: Mr. Giovanni Mantovani, CEO, VeronaFiere and creator of VINITALY, (Italy); Ms. Janet Dorozynski, Trade Commissioner, Canadian Wine, Beer and Spirits and Tourism, Trade Sectors Bureau (BBI), Global Affairs Canada (Canada); Mr. Mike Veseth, Wine Economist, Professor Emeritus of International Political Economy, University of Puget Sound (United States); Mr. Gabriel Fidel, Wine Tourism Consultant (Argentina); Ms. Ayana Mizawa, Chief winemaker, Chuo Budoshu Co., Ltd., Grace Wine (Japan); Mr. Pedro Vargas, International Projects Director, Leading Brands of Spain Forum (Spain); Mr. George Chogovadze, Head of Georgian National Tourism Administration (Georgia); Mr. Levan Davitashvili, Deputy Minister of Agriculture of Georgia (Georgia); Mr. Patrick Honnef, Winemaker, Viticulturist, CEO of Château Mukhrani, Georgia (Georgia); Mr. John H Wurdeman V, Owner of Pheasant’s Tears (Georgia); Mr. Santiago Vivanco, Director, Vivanco Museum of Wine Culture (Spain); Mr. Donald Hawkins, Eisenhower Professor, George Washington University (United States); Ms. Paula Sousa, Marketing & Tourism Sales Director, Quinta Nova N. S. Carmo (Portugal) and Ms. Zaida Semprun, Wine Tourism Commercial Manager, Freixenet Group (Spain).
Global tourism resilient to terrorism, Brexit and further macroeconomic challenges
Global Travel & Tourism continues to register strong growth despite challenges from terrorism, political turmoil, global economic developments, and the Brexit decision, according to new research by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).
The update of WTTC?s Economic Impact Reports 2016 shows that, despite the many challenges Travel & Tourism has faced in the first six months of 2016, the sector is still expected to grow by 3.1%, outpacing global economic growth forecast at 2.3%.
The regional outlook for direct Travel & Tourism GDP in 2016 shows that:
- South Asia leads the growth at 5.9%, driven by strong economic prospects in India.
- Latin America will be the worst performer, with an anticipated decline of 0.9%, driven by weakness in Brazil.
- Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia are expected to show solid growth at 4.7% and 4% respectively, stimulated by China growing at 6.3%.
- North America will perform well, with forecast growth of 3.1%.
- Europe will be challenged by lower visitor spend, but will still grow by 2.2%.
While the global picture remains positive, the outlook for some countries has deteriorated since WTTC?s last forecast in March 2016:
- In France, the sector?s direct contribution to GDP is still growing, but the forecast has been reduced from 2.9% to 1.1%, due to macroeconomic downgrades in other European countries, and compounded by the recent incidents in the country, including the atrocity in Nice.
- In Turkey, growth in Travel & Tourism?s direct contribution to GDP has been reduced further from -0.2% to -3.2%, due to the spate of terror attacks, the diplomatic dispute with Russia, the failed coup, and proximity to the Syrian conflict.
- In Brazil, thesector is still expected to contract, despite the positive effect of the Olympics. Growth has been downgraded from -0.9% to -1.6%, as a result of the political turmoil and weak macroeconomic performance.
The report includes a focus on the impact of the Brexit decision. This shows that Travel & Tourism in the UK is expected to hold up well in 2016 with growth of 3.6%. Weaker domestic spending growth, and a projected drop in UK outbound holidays of 3%, will be offset by higher spending in the UK by international visitors as a result of the favourable exchange rate.
David Scowsill, President & CEO, WTTC, said: ?Our update report highlights the resilience of travellers and the robustness of our sector, as tourism continues to outpace global economic growth by nearly 1%. Whilst we should not downplay the impact of incidents or turmoil at individual country level, on a macro-economic level we continue to register strong growth.
It is important to remember that tourism is a force for good. It brings tremendous social and economic benefits to countries and connects people from different cultures and backgrounds. We call on governments to continue to focus on the economic and social benefits of Travel & Tourism, and to work together with the private sector to combat some of the challenges we face.?
Nepal brings accessible tourism to World Tourism Day 2016
Ever since its inception, World Tourism Day is celebrated on September 27 to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political, and economic value. As the official day set aside in the United Nations Calendar, the celebration seeks to highlight tourism’s potential to contribute to reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), addressing some of the most pressing challenges society is faced with today.
Accessible tourism for all is about the creation of environments that can cater to the needs of all of us, whether traveling or staying at home due to a disability, even temporary, or to families with small children, or the ageing population, at some point in our lives, sooner or later, we all benefit from universal accessibility in tourism.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) strongly encourages nations to make all tourist facilities, products, and services accessible for everyone. This accessibility is crucial to attain sustainable tourist policies. The combined effort marks the celebration of World Tourism Day 2016 under the theme “Tourism for All – Promoting Universal Accessibility.”
Washington DC-based International Development Institute in collaboration with the Soarway Foundation, Operation Namaste, and Four Season Travel and Tours in Kathmandu, Nepal, has put together an Explore Himalayas 2016 program in September 2016. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 15% of the world’s population (1 billion people) is estimated to live with some form of disability.
The inclusive tourism movement in Nepal is pleased that the “Wounded Heroes Trek of Hope to Nepal” program is on the list of events by UNWTO, celebrating World Tourism Day. The trek is the only such project to be recognized in Nepal – and one of only three throughout South Asia. This gives much-needed hope and a moral boost to all involved in turning accessible tourism into a reality in Nepal. The Wounded Heroes Trek of Hope to Nepal hopes to provide international attention to the country to boost tourism, thereby positively moving the country forward economically.
The program takes a team of 19 wounded heroes, which includes a team of medical professionals and a team of writers, as well as journalists to Nepal with the hope of inspiring 500,000 people with disabilities in Nepal by creating awareness for social responsibility and making Nepal accessible for people with disabilities during the rebuilding of Nepal after the 2015 earthquake. The program will take this team to Kathmandu, Nagarkot, Pokhara, the Poonhill trek, and Chitwan.
Scott DeLisi, former US ambassador to Nepal, who is now Executive Director of the Soarway Foundation, said: “It’s about inclusive tourism. By making Nepal an accessible tourism location we can build an economy. We can help them build a future that they can face with confidence rather than fear.”
Egypt and Zimbabwe tourism cooperation goes to higher levels
Zimbabwe’s Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Dr, Engr Walter Mzembi who is in Cairo, Egypt on his UNWTO campaign trail, had a fruitful engagement with his Egyptian counter-part His Excellency Mohamed Yehia Rahed.
The two Ministers discussed, among other key strategic issues, the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Co-operation in the field of Tourism signed between the two countries in December 2014.
Speaking after the meeting, Minister Mzembi revealed that they had agreed on the setting up of the Joint Tourism Technical Committee (JTTC), which will be instrumental in the operationalisation and full implementation of the MoU.
“We are definitely excited about our engagements here and one key thing that was at the epi centre of our discussions was the urgent need to set up a Joint Tourism Technical Committee that will spearhead the operationalisation of our MoU with Egypt. There are various programmes that will be implemented in the context of our MoU. One such key programme is the agreed Egypt Tourism Week to be held in February 2017 in Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Tourism Week in Egypt in April 2017 which, essentially, is a reciprocal event”, said Minister Mzembi.
The Minister added that, “this initiative, apart from cementing relations between the two countries, helps to boost tourism promotion and enhances cultural ties that are key in sustainable tourism development as this will be undertaken by tour operators, travel agencies and the media, among other key stakeholders”.
The Egyptian Minister of Tourism His Excellency Mohamed Yehia Rahed said his government is keen to see the full implementation of the bilateral tourism pact.
“We are happy to be hosting Minister Mzembi and his delegation in Egypt. There is indeed need to advance close cooperation especially in the field of tourism as espoused in our signed MoU. Africa must do more in the areas of joint marketing and promotion activities if we are to increase our market share in terms of tourism global arrivals,” said His Excellency Rahed.
The meeting also discussed how Egypt has successfully managed to sustain its tourism industry, which is a major contributor to the economic growth of this influential North African country. This has successfully happened against the backdrop of residual concerns about security. It is an experience that could be shared with others on the continent and beyond.
The two Ministers also agreed to work assiduously towards an early resumption of direct air-links between Cairo and Harare as this is largely viewed as a critical success factor in spurring tourism growth in both countries.
Egypt is the headquarters of the Arab League, a very strategic organization of Arab states which has enormous influence on all its membership from Africa to the Middle East.
His run for the highest office in tourism makes this minister of tourism unstoppable
Sugar Chagonda, who is in charge of Public Relations for Zimbabwe Tourism and his currently traveling with the Zimbabwe Minister of Tourism Dr.Engr Walter Mzembi posted this paragraph to his Facebook. He heard His Excellency, Mr Mohamed Yehia Rashed, the minister of tourism for Egypt saying: “I must congratulate Dr Mzembi for his dexterity and charm that saw him winning the hearts and minds of the Egyptians. I feel humbled to be part of his winning Tourism team”.
The Egyptian minister apparently mentioned this yesterday during a meeting with his counterpart from Zimbabwe.
Mzembi has been traveling the globe in his bid to become the highest leader in world tourism. The Zimbabwe Minister of Tourism, Walter Mzembi, who is working to secure the post of Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) received yet another further boost when he recently received the full backing of the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Hon. Sameh Shoukry.
Egyptian Minister Shoukry assured Minister Mzembi of his support, emphasizing that as a committed member of the African Union, Egypt was bound by the unanimous decision taken by African Heads of State and Government at the recent AU Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, to endorse him (Minister Mzembi) as Africa’s candidate for the top UNWTO post.
“Egypt is committed and bound by the AU resolutions, particularly on the candidature of Dr. Mzembi. We want to assure him of our support,” said the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Minister Mzembi also met with Dr. Moushira Khattab, Egypt’s former Minister of Family and Population and now the country’s candidate for the post of Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Dr. Khattab’s candidature for the top UNESCO post was also unanimously endorsed by the African Union at the recent Kigali Summit.
The two African candidates held detailed discussions yesterday on the evident synergy and potential for close coordination between UNWTO and UNESCO in terms of bringing people together; promoting deeper understanding and awareness between and among different cultures; and how, working more closely together, the two organizations could contribute more positively towards bridging divisions between peoples and nations.
The two candidates agreed to maintain close and regular contact with regard to the conduct of their respective campaigns and to work assiduously in support of each other as aspiring African candidates to positions of leadership within the broad United Nations family.
Egypt sits in both the African Union (AU) and the Arab League, hence its influence on countries on both sides of the divide. Currently, she is the chair of the UNWTO Executive Council which is expected to seat as a nomination court to receive candidatures from member states interested in fielding their nationals as candidate for the post of UNWTO Secretary General at its 104th meeting slated for October 28 to November 2, 2016, in Luxor, Egypt.
Minister Mzembi is due to leave Cairo on Saturday for Tunisia which, like Egypt, is a member of the Executive Council of the UNWTO. It is the 32-member Executive Council which, at its meeting in Madrid, Spain, in May, 2017, will elect the next Secretary General of the organization.
The current UNWTO Secretary General, Dr. Taleb Rifai, a Jordanian national, is due to stand down from the post at the end of 2017.
If elected, Minister Mzembi will take up his post of Secretary General of the UNWTO at the organization’s headquarters in Madrid, Spain, in January, 2018.
Policy Being Formulated to Develop Faith-Based Tourism
MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; August 16, 2016: As part of the Ministry of Tourism’s strategy to significantly increase visitor arrivals and develop the tourism sector, a policy is being formulated to deliberately target the faith-based tourism market.
According to Travel-Market Report, a noted publication for travel professionals, faith-based tourism contributes between US$50 billion and US$100 billion annually to the global economy. Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett told influential church leaders attending the World-wide Synod of the Moravian Church that he was keen on tapping into this market.
Minister Bartlett addressed the Moravians from more than 30 countries at a reception at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort & Spa, Montego Bay recently, ahead of the start of their weeklong synod which is held in a different country every seven years and was last held in Jamaica in 1974.
The framework for the faith-based tourism strategy was developed recently and according to Minister Bartlett, was born not just out of a strong call for more visitors to come to the country, “but because we believe in the mission and we believe that there is great benefit to accrue to our society from the values of Christianity.”
He added, “also, our experience has shown that Jamaica is positioning itself as a truly democratic society where freedom of thought and religion is practiced and where Christians feel freer to speak and to practice their faith more than any other place on earth.”
Minister Bartlett asserted that he was accentuating “a position that is truly honest about Jamaica,” as he pointed out that “we have more churches per square mile in Jamaica than anywhere else in the region.” He also stated, “our collective consciences have been conditioned by The Bible” and that the country’s Constitution and laws have been influenced by God’s principles.
Elaborating on the development of the policy, Mr. Bartlett said it would guide how Jamaica builds the requisite infrastructure needed to enable larger groups of Christians and/or religious visitors to come to the country and determine the framework of experiences that are offered.
“Our churches have over the years been the base of faith-based tourism but the churches have not been structured and organized enough to encourage large visits and pilgrimages; nor large conventions into Jamaica, so the Montego Bay Convention Centre is going to be able to respond to the call for usage for large and medium-sized conventions,” he indicated.
He stressed that the last time Jamaica had a large church group visiting was in 2011 when some 3,000 Christians arrived in Montego Bay on a chartered cruise dubbed Cruise With a Cause and they carried out voluntary social programmes including visitations to schools and hospitals.
The tourism minister declared, “we are excited at the prospects of working with the churches in building out a very important area of tourism and it’s going to have more than the value of just bringing visitors here and providing greater earnings for the economy; it is going to be a confluence of a deeper spiritual and a more moral approach that will influence our lives and help us to be a better people in Jamaica.”
Minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand receives letter from African “brother and colleague”
Travel to Thailand, the land of smiles. This was the statement today by the Hon. Walter Mzembi, the world traveling tourism minister from Africa. Mzembi may very well be the next Secretary General of UNWTO. He is more and more showing face everywhere. Not only tourism insiders consider him now an important global player for the largest industry in the world, travel and tourism.
With his bid to become the next Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the Zimbabwe Minister of Tourism and Hospitality has shown his commitment and interest in reaching out to all corners of the world. It includes his planned attendance during the celebration of the upcoming World Tourism Day in Bangkok next month.
In view of the recent and ongoing attack on the Thai Travel and Tourism Industry, the minister today had the following letter delivered to H.E. Mrs. Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand.
eTN was able to obtain a copy of the letter. It says:
Dear Madam Minister,
I have learnt with dismay and a deep sense of sadness of a wave in recent days, of coordinated bomb attacks, whose key target is clearly our beloved sector, Tourism.
The cold blooded acts, meant to induce fear in the travelling public, and to undermine Thailand’s buoyant and resilient Tourism Sector which recently registered record arrivals will not deter the globe from its continued expression of goodwill for the country. But once again dear colleague Sister, this latest act of aggression on our sector, should unite us against terror and heighten our resolve to find sustainable solutions to securing peace for Tourism to thrive. No cause is worth the loss of innocent lives, pursuing the happiness enshrined in tourism.
On behalf of my sector and on my own behalf, I wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to the Government of Thailand, the bereaved families and those of the injured and wish them eternal peace and speed recovery respectively.
I wish to reaffirm notwithstanding all these distractions, my commitment to attend the World Tourism Day Celebrations in Bangkok on 27th September 2016.
The best way to help Thailand, under the circumstances is to continue visiting Thailand, the Land of Smiles!
Please accept Madam Minister, the assurances of my highest consideration.
Yours Hon Dr Walter Mzembi (MP),
MINISTER OF TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE
UNWTO CAF CHAIRPERSON
AFRICA UNION OFFICIAL CANDIDATE FOR UNWTO SECRETARY GENERAL POST, 2017 sincerely,
Obama ties to ISIS: An appeal to the American Travel Industry by the ICTP Chairman
Today an American tourism leader, the chairman of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP), asked the American travel and tourism industry to unite. ICTP Chairman Juergen T. Steinmetz, who is also the publisher of eTurboNews (eTN), a global news publication for the travel and tourism industry, spoke out after US presidential candidate Donald Trump leaked the result of his extensive research to link the sitting U.S. President Barack Obama to the Islamic State, a terror group also known as IS or ISIS.
It’s not April Fools’ Day, and this is not “just for laughs,” but today on August 11, 2016 Donald Trump concluded that American President Obama was the founder of the Islamic State.
These are words by Donald Trump, a native U.S. citizen running for the highest office in the United States of America. He relates a warning to the American people, as the want-to-be future leader of the free world.
Juergen Steinmetz said: “Candidate Donald Trump must be disqualified. His behavior is unacceptable for anyone, specially for someone running for public office. It would be unspeakable if he ever became president of our great country or got a leading position in our government, a government put together by the people and for the people.”
Steinmetz went on to comment: “The terror group ISIS and Trump both pray on terror, one with deadly force and bombs, the other with terroristic verbal threatening and the potential to inspire some crazy people to use such threats as a trigger for deadly force.”
“I don’t care if Trump promises everything in the book. I don’t care if his approach would guarantee us millions of jobs, if his fence along our borders would resolve our immigration issues. Adolf Hitler got the German people lots of jobs as well, and he was voted in by the German people, many of them good people, but misled and clueless.
“At this point it becomes really irrelevant what both candidates are promising.”
Steinmetz continued: “Travel and tourism is the largest industry in the world and an industry of tolerance, peace and understanding. The United States of America is seen as a tourism leader and the largest tourism market in the world. Many jobs depend on this industry.
This is our industry and our industry should unite against a political candidate preaching hate and violence, no matter in what country he is, or what he supports. We are a peaceful industry in a peaceful country with great people. Our industry is a fun industry and must stand together against hate and intolerance. The discussion is no longer pro-Democrat or pro-Republican at this point. The decision for anyone loving this country can only be ‘NOT TRUMP.’
A united NOT TRUMP voice of the American travel industry should be heard loud and clear and far. It’s extremely important for our industry to flourish.”
Steinmetz concluded: “Our Secret Service should start doing their job to protect our president, President Barack Obama, and arrest Donald Trump for terroristic threatening. I can only thank Donald Trump for revealing President Obama’s ties to ISIS and feel sorry for Mr. Trump. I wish Mr. Trump all the best for his future endeavors and hopefully he can find some professional help.”
The International Coalition of Tourism Partners is about GREEN GROWTH & QUALITY equals BUSINESS.
It’s free to join ICTP as a destination, as a stakeholder, association, tourism leader or journalist. Go to www.ictp.travel for more information.
UNWTO welcomes Indonesia’s cutting edge tourism visa policy
UNWTO has expressed its full support to the decision of the Government of Indonesia to grant free visa to citizens from 169 countries. The measure looks for attracting international tourism to the country by simplifying travel procedures and follows research by UNWTO and WTTC that shows that visa facilitation in the ASEAN economies could create between 333,000 to 654,000 new jobs in a period of three years.
The visa-free policy is valid for a maximum stay of 30 days, has no restriction on the number of visits per year, and is non-extendable nor convertible to any other stay permit. Nationals of visa-free countries can enter Indonesia in any of the 124 immigration check points that the country possesses.
“Indonesia is setting an example to the world. UNWTO welcomes the decision of the Government of Indonesia which clearly reflects the commitment of the country with the development of the tourism sector as a driver of economic growth, jobs and well-being for its people” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.
UNWTO has been extensively advocating for the benefits of safe, secure and seamless travel as a means to promote tourism development and multiply socio-economic benefits of the sector.
According to the UNWTO/WTTC Report Impact of Visa Facilitation in ASEAN Member States, ASEAN stands to gain 6 to 10 million additional international tourist arrivals from improved visa facilitation. The additional receipts generated by these tourists could reach between US$7 and US$12 billion.
Progress has been made at global level yet many opportunities remain for improvement, namely through maximizing the use of new technologies.
The 2015 UNWTO Visa Openness Report shows that the share of total tourists required to obtain a traditional visa prior to travelling continues to decline and is at its lowest level ever. In 2015, 39% of the world population could travel for tourism without obtaining a traditional visa prior to departure as compared to only 23% in 2008.
USA joining UNWTO: One State at a time?
“On World Tourism I am full to the brim with ideas,” Dr. Walter Mzembi tells eTN. Perhaps this is the solution for the largest world tourism superpower, the United States to officially join the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). The solution may be 50 new members to the UNWTO, one State at a time?
This out of the box approach was discussed with U.S. Ambassador Harry K. Thomas, Jr and Dr. Walter Mzembi, outspoken candidate for the next Secretary General of the UNWTO in 2017.
The United States Ambassador to Zimbabwe Harry K. Thomas, Jr. paid a Courtney call to the Zimbabwe minister of tourism Dr. Walter Mzembi on Thursday last week.
The minister had a wide ranging discussions with the American ambassador but the key message was on Universal Membership of the UNWTO. Currently the United States is not a member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
Hon. Mzembi explained to the eTurboNews (eTN) publisher Juergen T Steinmetz in a phone interview on Sunday.
“The current world situation requires an inclusive approach in interrogating contemporary challenges and prescribing solutions, especially in Tourism and Security, Migration, Natural Disasters.”
“My point in the discussion with the Hon. Ambassador was that in the new world order there is no country that does not host a tourism economy, and every country is now either a source market or destination or both.
Universal membership to the UNWTO aligned to UN’s 192 Member States will be on the top of my agenda if I was elected to become the next Secretary General of the UNWTO in 2017.”
“Recruitment will be done on the back of a transformational agenda that places a new value proposition on the table to those that opted out on why they should belong. Ahead of UN 2017, IYSTD and running concurrently with my campaign for secretary general this shall be the key thrust. Recruitment and is not a secretariat function per se. Therefore I envisage a ministerial structure, that will be assigned this task going forward.”
For many years arguments from Washington were in opposition to joining UNWTO. The argument against it is money. “Paying high membership fees for just one voice. eTN was told at a WTM dinner by a senior government officials who didn’t want to be named:”Why should the United States pay top membership fees based on population and economic output, but only has one voice equal to the voice of a very small country like San Marino or Andorra?
eTN asked Dr.Mzembi about this. His response was surprising.
Dr. Mzembi: “The ambassador and I discussed the State Membership approach, I already have States like Illinois who are open to such proposals. I will definitely bring it up in Atlanta, but it needs a reformist approach within the UNWTO organization and one has to be looking at class of membership, voting rights etc.”
Dr. Mzembi will be coming to the United States to speak at the 2016 African Diaspora World Tourism Awards in Atlanta, Ga. on August 27th. This is an historical visit to the United States and very significant for the ADWT-Awards event.
The minister added: “Without this out of the box thinking UNWTO will remain the obscure technical organization that it has been for a while.It needs fresh thinking and I am full to the brim with ideas.”
The first United States Ambassador to Zimbabwe was appointed on May 23, 1980, after the Republic of Zimbabwe came into being to replace the previous white-minority government of Rhodesia, and its successor Zimbabwe-Rhodesia (1979–1980).
The Republic of Zimbabwe came into being on April 18, 1980. The United States immediately recognized the new nation and moved to establish diplomatic relations. An embassy in Harare was established on April 18, 1980, the independence day for Zimbabwe. Jeffrey Davidow was appointed as chargé d’affaires ad interim pending the appointment of an ambassador. The first ambassador, Robert V. Keeley, was appointed one month later on May 23, 1980.
The current U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe is Harry K. Thomas, Jr., who was sworn in on December 8, 2015
To date, Dr. Mzembi is the longest serving tourism minister in UNWTO, currently serving as chair for the United Nation Commission on Africa.
He is credited with institutionalizing tourism in the Africa Union which had long overlooked tourism as a critical factor in economic and social cohesion and development. He has also been a member of Parliament for the Masvingo South Constituency since 2004 and UNWTO’s Commission for Africa Chairperson from 2013 to date.
His candidacy for the UNWTO top post was recently endorsed by the African Union.