The President of Uzbekistan put forward a number of important initiatives at the 25th session of the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization

On October 16, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev took part in the opening ceremony of the 25th session of the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the events of which will be held in the city of Samarkand until October 20. This was reported by the press service of the head of our state.

In his speech at the main forum of the global tourism organization, in which representatives of more than 140 countries take part, the head of our state put forward a number of important initiatives for the further development of the industry.

The leader of Uzbekistan emphasized that today the tourism sector is one of the dynamically developing and promising sectors of the world economy. Uzbekistan also gives priority to the development of the tourism industry as part of large-scale and irreversible reforms to modernize the country.

In recent years, a visa-free regime has been introduced for citizens of about 100 countries, and a simplified procedure for issuing an electronic visa has been established for citizens of another 55 countries.

Favorable conditions have been created for running all types of tourism business, tax and customs benefits have been provided, and credit and financial support has been strengthened. Despite the restrictions associated with the pandemic,
Over the course of two years, more than 800 infrastructure projects were implemented.

The hotel stock has been increased to 140 thousand beds, 70 new tourist routes have been opened, and 6 private airlines have begun operating.

As a result, the number of foreign tourists arriving in Uzbekistan has doubled. Income from the export of tourism services increased 4 times. According to estimates, a total of 7 million tourists will visit our country this year. By 2030, it is planned to increase this figure to 15 million, and the flow of domestic tourists to 25 million people.

The large-scale work being carried out is receiving recognition from the international community. In particular, Uzbekistan occupies high positions in international rankings as the safest and fastest growing tourism destination.

The head of Uzbekistan said that within the framework of the developed Strategy for Integrated Development of Tourism until 2030, priority attention will be paid to the creation of modern tourism and transport infrastructure. New high-speed roads and railways will be built, the air fleet will be doubled, and the number of flights will quadruple. 30 large tourism clusters will be created in large cities and places frequently visited by tourists.

According to the national program “Pearls of Ancient History”, the number of cultural heritage sites attractive to tourists will be increased from 800 to 2.5 thousand, 745 cultural heritage sites will be restored, “Open-air museums” have been created in 20 architectural monuments.

As part of the pilgrimage tourism program, the number of tourists will be increased by more than three times compared to today’s figure.

The focus will be on creating joint tourist routes with the states of Central Asia.

In general, as a result of the ongoing work to develop tourism destinations, it is planned to create at least 1 million new jobs in the future.

At the same time, the leader of Uzbekistan noted that “today the most pressing problem of global tourism is to ensure a guaranteed system of tourist safety.” In order to strengthen a strong legal framework in the field of international tourism, the head of our state advocated the development within the UN of a Global Code of Safe Tourism.

In the context of growing problems of climate change, the relevance of the adoption of the International Program of Action for the Development of Green Tourism was emphasized.

As practical steps, it was proposed to establish the nomination “Best City for the Implementation of Green Tourism” within the framework of the UNWTO, as well as to create a Global Laboratory of Green Tourism Startups based on the Central Asian University of Environmental Studies and Climate Change and the International University of Tourism and Cultural Heritage “Silk Road” in Samarkand.

In order to further improve conditions for travelers with disabilities and develop inclusive tourism infrastructure, the President of Uzbekistan called for declaring 2025 the World Year of Inclusive Tourism and adopting a special declaration.

The expediency of creating a Council of Historic Cities for Tourism under the UNWTO was noted – a platform for exchanging the most advanced experience in the preservation of historical monuments. They expressed readiness to hold the first meeting of the Council in the city of Bukhara.

The leader of our country announced the allocation of special grants for training specialists at the newly created International Academy of Tourism in Samarkand, which is a unique educational institution of UNWTO on training and advanced training of personnel in the field of tourism.

The head of Uzbekistan proposed holding the next World Youth Tourism Summit in the city of Tashkent, which will become an important platform for young people to generate new ideas and industry development projects.

An initiative has been put forward to establish a special international UNWTO award for contributions to promoting the Silk Road brand. The created Silk Road Thematic Office will be actively involved in the implementation of this plan in Samarkand.

Attention was drawn to the importance of establishing the Global Media Campus and holding its forums every two years within the framework of the sessions of the General Assembly. They expressed readiness to host the first media campus in Uzbekistan.

The leader of our country also called on delegates to support the initiative to declare Samarkand the International Capital of Cultural Tourism and adopt a corresponding declaration.

At the end of his speech, the President of Uzbekistan wished the General Assembly a successful conduct and the achievement of new breakthrough results.