Spanish representatives will reveal the impact of the March 11 Madrid events on Travel & Tourism in
|
|
|
On May 2, at the 4th Global Travel & Tourism Summit, Miguel Angel Villanueva, Head of Economy & Tourism Development for the City of Madrid,
and official representative of the Mayor of Madrid, will join with José Luis Zoreda, CEO, EXCELTUR, to reveal the true impact of the Madrid atrocity on Travel & Tourism in Spain and to examine future prospects for the industry.
Miguel Angel Villanueva is Madrid’s top official in charge of Tourism and will represent the public sector. José Luis Zoreda, is CEO of EXCELTUR, the alliance for Tourism excellence in Spain, and will represent the private sector.
EXCELTUR has recently carried out a survey that compiles the views of some 1,500 Spanish business leaders on the impact of March 11 on Travel & Tourism in Madrid and the results of this survey will be released during the breakfast meeting.
This presentation, is highly significant, not only because it brings together two highly qualified public and private sector tourism representatives from Spain, but also because it will be the first major public statement of this nature about the Madrid atrocities outside Spain. Mr Villanueva and Mr Zoreda will use this platform to openly debate ideas, consider public and private sector expectations and proposals for the way forward for tourism in Spain. They will also be prepared to take questions from the media, not only on the research but also on prospects for Travel & Tourism to Madrid / Spain and on what is being done going forward.
The impact of the Madrid atrocities will comprise half of a special breakfast session commencing at 7.00 am on Sunday May 2 in the Salwa Ballroom of the Sheraton Hotel, Doha. The other half of the meeting will review the World Travel & Tourism Council’s India Initiative. The session will be moderated by Jean-Claude Baumgarten, President of WTTC.
Case Study: What’s Driving Dramatic Travel & Tourism Growth in India?
Growth of the Travel & Tourism sector in India is now faster than in any other major economy. The World Travel & Tourism Council’s India Initiative commenced in February 2000. Since then, it has formulated a coherent and cohesive strategic policy for the region, it has helped identify key weaknesses in India’s tourism product and has begun to find workable solutions to address these issues.
Taking part in a discussion about the results of the India Initiative will be Yogesh Chandra, Secretary General, WTTC India Initiative, Amitabh Kant, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, India, NK Singh, Member, Planning Commission India, Lalit Suri MP, Chairman WTTC India Initiative and Chairman & Managing Director, Bharat Hotels and Rathi Vinay Jha, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, India.
Jean-Claude Baumgarten, WTTC President said: “Travel & Tourism is a vital economic sector, responsible for over 10% of world GDP and more than 200 million jobs. We need to understand how it can best be harnessed to make a positive contribution to national economies everywhere. At the same time, we must understand what to do when events conspire to damage it. In this session, we will consider two case studies that illuminate both perspectives.
One is on the WTTC India Initiative that has successfully stimulated government action to increase investment in the sector, remove barriers to growth and consequently raise the economic contribution of Travel & Tourism to the Indian economy.
The other reviews the impact of the Madrid atrocity of March 11 that was designed to undermine Travel & Tourism in Spain – the most important sector of the economy that, according to EXCELTUR, represents 12% of GDP and 1.5 million direct jobs. We will seek to quantify the economic damage and draw appropriate conclusions for the future.â€Â
ENDS
About the 4th Global Travel & Tourism Summit
The 4th Global Travel & Tourism Summit is the highest-level meeting in the annual Travel & Tourism calendar. It will be attended by Chairmen and CEOs of the world’s top Travel & Tourism companies and numerous government officials, who will be available for interview by the media.
There will be a double news conference on Saturday 1 May. One part will cover the launch of a Grand Plan for Tourism in Qatar, presented by Akbar Al Baker who is both CEO of Qatar Airways and Chairman on the Qatar Tourism Authority; the other will be the new economic research from WTTC.
As one would expect from a gathering at this level, the networking will be unparalleled and participants will have a genuine opportunity to influence the future direction of the Travel & Tourism industry.
Qatar Airways is offering a special fare of $200 return for accredited journalists covering the Summit and Qatar National Hotels is providing accommodation at $50 / night to stay in top quality hotels. (NB: Special rates for the media are NOT for broader publication.)
Under the theme ‘Driving Change’, the Summit discussions will focus on priorities for change and how best to make it happen. The format of the conference will be a series of highly interactive panel discussions. On stage as panellists and experts will be the following people and many, many more of similar stature:
• Akbar Al Baker, CEO, Qatar Airways•
• Doug Baker, US Department of Commerce
• Philippe Bourguignon, Co-Chief Executive Officer, World Economic Forum
• Dr Michael Frenzel, Chairman, TUI AG
• Edwin Fuller, President & Managing Director, Marriott Lodging International, Inc
• Stelios Haji-Ioannou, Founder & Chairman, EasyGroup
• Richard North, CEO, InterContinental Hotels Group PLC
• Alan Parker, CEO-designate, Whitbread plc, Managing Director, Whitbreat Hotels Company
• David Scowsill, CEO, Opodo
• Gene Sperling, Former White House Economic Advisor
• Rathi Vinay Jha, Secretary of Tourism, India
• Brian Wallace, Deputy Group CEO and Group Finance Director, Hilton Group plc
• Vincent A. Wolfington, Chairman Carey International & Chairman WTTC
• Peter Wong, Chairman, MK Corporation
Some of the questions for analysis and discussion will include:
• What are the latest global trends and what impact will they have?
• What factors will define the competitive edge of the most successful CEOs?
• What will be the best new business strategies for the changing environment?
• What are the main challenges faced by governments and how will they be met?
• Where do the leading entrepreneurs consider the hot investments to be?
• What will the best on-line providers do?
• What can be done to improve customer experiences?
• In the face of bad news, what can be done to prevent unnecessary panic?
• Which markets will provide the best growth potential?
For more information about the Summit, including assistance arranging interviews with panellists on site, please contact David Tarsh on +44 20 7602 5262, +44 (0) 7770 816 070, or go to www.GlobalTravelTourism.com, where it is possible to register and apply for media accreditation on line.
About WTTC
WTTC is a membership organisation representing the leaders of the global travel and tourism industry. It is also a forum for global business leaders comprising presidents, chairs and CEOs of a hundred of the world’s foremost companies. It is the only body representing the private sector in all parts of the Travel & Tourism industry worldwide.
WTTC’s mission is to raise awareness of the full economic impact of Travel & Tourism, the world’s largest generator of wealth and employment, which accounts for more than 200 million jobs and over 10 per cent of global GDP. Governments are encouraged to unlock the industry’s potential by adopting policy framework for sustainable tourism development.
For more information about WTTC, please visit www.WTTC.org or contact David Tarsh, Communications Consultant, on +44 (0) 20 7602 5262, +44 (0) 7770 816 070, DavidTarsh@WTTC.org.
About EXCELTUR
Similar to WTTC, EXCELTUR represents the Travel & Tourism private sector in Spain and is a membership organization founded by the Chairmen of 30 leading Spanish Travel & Tourism companies from every sector of the industry. The Members jointly represent a turnover of 24 Billion Euros, a workforce of over 200,000 employees and direct investments in over 45 countries. WTTC and EXCELTUR have a partnership agreement, the basis of which is to work together to further the cause of Travel & Tourism wherever possible.
|
| Back to main page
|
Showing 1 news articles
Back
To Top
|
|
