The tourism sector acts as a powerful force that unites people from different backgrounds and fosters intercultural dialogue.
Known as a dynamic and evolving industry, the tourism sector offers a wealth of possibilities for cultural exchange.
Azerbaijan’s rich culture, history and diverse traditions offer travelers many opportunities to engage with the local community.
The country has embarked on a number of measures to recover its tourism sector following the pandemic.
As a result, a significant increase in the number of tourists visiting the country has been recorded, which has a positive impact on Azerbaijan’s economy.
Large-scale construction work is also underway in the liberated areas of Azerbaijan to revive tourism. Galabagh is expected to become a major tourist destination in the near future.
Participants of the 6th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue held in Baku exchanged views on the role of tourism as a tool to bring people together and promote intercultural dialogue during a panel session.
The session was moderated by Jafar Jafari, founder and editor-in-chief of the magazine Tourism Research Bulletin, Azer News reported.
Director of the Azerbaijan Oblast Tourism Authority Fuad Nagiyev, speaking at the panel session, said that Azerbaijan’s tourism sector has fully recovered after the coronavirus pandemic. In this regard, a significant increase in tourist flows has been recorded.
“Tourism potential in Azerbaijan is high. Tourism also creates opportunities to bring people together. As the number of tourists increases around the world, people from different cultures are constantly interacting. Tourism fosters intercultural dialogue. It plays a big role in promoting it,” Fuad Nagiyev said.
UN Tourism Secretary-General Zorica Urosevic praised the level of organization of the 6th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue.
“Through the Forum, we can influence intercultural dialogue. The role of tourism in income generation is known. More specifically, 10 percent of jobs are related to tourism. In 2023, there will be more than 1 trillion registered tourists worldwide.” In this sense, this is a very large number. ” said Zolitsa Urosevic.
Sarajevo City Council President Jasmin Ademovic emphasized the importance of providing young people with more information about tourism.
Chantal Rugamba, founder and managing director of Songa Africa and Amakoro Songa Lodge Rosette, said Rwanda is a good example when it comes to tourism recovery.
“This country is small and is currently in the process of recovery.Tourism has a big role to play in this regard.Our country has developed tourism in order to eliminate poverty and improve the status of the country.Recovery tourism is the main “This is impossible without peace.”
Lucy Garner, Senior Youth and Human Resource Development Specialist, outlined the need for a deeper understanding of the convergence between tourism and peacebuilding around the world. Everyone should be able to live in peace.
Emphasizing the importance of young people’s active participation in new projects, the expert said:
“There are approximately 1.8 billion young people in the world. They are facing serious challenges these days. Young people are trying to take control of their lives, which is a good sign. We need to listen to their opinions and value them. I believe that mutual understanding between different cultures is important.” Dialogue will also have a big impact on this. Our goal is to create conditions for communication between young people of different religions and cultures, and this is the main condition for this. ”
Daniela Otero, Commissioner of the World Commission on Tourism Ethics (WCTE), emphasized the importance of holding such forums for the development of the tourism sector.
Miguel Carvajal, co-founder and general director of Get Up and Go Colombia, mentioned projects that support communities in the tourism sector.
“In this regard, more centers should be established and people should be provided with information about tourism in those places. I think every country should have such places . Indeed, tourism is a very important sector, ”said Daniela Otero.
The panel session continued the discussion on other issues in the tourism sector.
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Laman Ismayilova is a staff journalist at AzerNews. Follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr
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