WTTC Announces Theme and Speakers for Global Summit in Cancun

Cancun, Mexico, March 22, 2021 / TRAVELINDEX / The World Travel & Tourism Council is delighted to announce “Uniting the World for Recovery” as the key theme for its annual Global Summit, taking place in Cancun, Mexico next month.

WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, is all set to host its highly anticipated 20th Global Summit on April 25-27, in the popular Mexican resort town of Cancun.

• Read all the latest UNWTO News and Announcements here.

The world is seeing progress with vaccine rollouts, digital passes becoming more normalised and an increased regularity of health and hygiene measures that signal that countries are preparing for the restart of international travel through all the right measures and protocols. Therefore, this is the perfect time for the summit to happen, and it will be the ideal platform to discuss the recovery of the sector which has been devasted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

At a press conference in Cancun yesterday, Gloria Guevara, WTTC President & CEO and Carlos Joaquín González, Governor of the State of Quintana Roo, announced that speakers from all corners of the globe will be taking part, including business leaders from Carnival Corporation, Hilton, Marriott, Meliá, Airbnb, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, Expedia Group, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Trip.com and Internova among others.

During the press conference, WTTC also announced that Former President of Colombia and 2016 Nobel Peace Prize winner Juan Manuel Santos, will be taking to the stage during the Global Summit.

WTTC is also delighted to announce a number of key initiatives related to the Travel & Tourism sector will be presented at the Global Summit. The new initiatives will focus on sustainability, the digital agenda, social impact of Travel & Tourism, and women’s empowerment.

The global tourism body will launch its ‘Women Empowerment Declaratory’ at the Global Summit, at which it hopes its 200 private sector Members will join. The women’s initiative is being launched to focus on defining and influencing policies that can help empower women from all walks of life and ensure recovery efforts reach women around the world. The initiative will also work to reduce the gender gap in Travel & Tourism.

The event, which will take place in a hybrid format, allowing those unable to travel to benefit from the content virtually, is taking place at the Moon Palace Convention Centre in the heart of the resort.

Gloria Guevara, WTTC President & CEO said, “Our Global Summit will be the platform for the global recovery of this important industry. It is time for everyone to work together and move this sector forward. Our event will pave the way to recover millions of Travel & Tourism jobs which have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We would like to thank the Government of Quintana Roo, which was one of the first global destinations to receive the WTTC Safe Travels Stamp, for working so hard to ensure the very highest levels of health and hygiene are in place for our Global Summit.”

Carlos Joaquín González, Governor of the State of Quintana Roo said: “The WTTC Global Summit will be an incredible event that will generate investment and promotion, but will also promote social development in the destination, as well as the empowerment of women.

“It will be an honour for Quintana Roo to host so many representatives of the global Travel & Tourism sector, and we are looking forward to welcoming them to Cancun.”

• Read all the latest UNWTO News and Announcements here.

The Global Summit will be first major live event in the Travel & Tourism sector and, world-leading hygiene and safety protocols will be in place throughout to ensure the health and safety of every participant, with testing and regular health checks, guided by the very latest medical and scientific advice.