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The World Tourism Forum for Peace and Sustainable Development will be vitally important for the future of the fastest growing
economic sector and even more, for the environmental, cultural and social awareness of tourism in the international community,
stressed the World Tourism Organization (WTO) on Monday.
The first Annual Summit of the Forum is scheduled for 1-6 December of 2004 in Salvador de Bahía, Brazil. This ongoing,
permanent global initiative, was launched in November of 2003 in Brasília by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and will be
hosted by Brazil until 2006. Besides WTO, key partners include UNESCO, the United Nations Development Program and the
Brazilian Tourism Ministry, with support from a host of global institutions and non-government organizations. The executive
partner is Brazil's "Instituto de Hospitalidade".
By pursuing the sustainable development of the tourism industry, the Forum works to generate conditions for peace,
sustainable development - environmental, social and economic - and the preservation of cultural diversity throughout the planet.
WTO Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli underlined that "the Forum aims to promote creation of millions of new jobs and
income-generating activities, particularly in the developing world. The goal is to contribute significantly towards social
integration and the reduction of poverty". The Forum´s objectives will be accomplished through concrete initiatives, or
"illustrative projects", in which the knowledge and solutions developed through meetings and discussion are put to into practice.
The importance of the Forum for the WTO will be highlighted on 2 and 3 December, when the Executive Council of the
Organization will be summoned on its 74th session. Also in the context of the Forum, a WTO meeting will be held on the
prevention and fight against the sexual exploitation of children in tourism.
The Forum's efforts develop primarily through five interactive networks with global participation. The results of meetings and
discussions are consolidated in a series of Annual Summits, to be held in Brazil while it hosts the Forum.
At the summits, practical results from around the world - obtained from the use of concepts and solutions developed through
the Forum - will be presented in detail. The summits also include an arts and entertainment agenda, and a "best practices" fair
featuring ideas and solutions in sustainable tourism.
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