Tag Archives: Julia Simpson opening speech

At the opening of the global summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) Julia Simpson, President and CEO WTTC in her welcome address shared the agenda for the summit and the new initiatives to be launched. “Ma-bu-hi. It’s incredible to think of what we have been through since we gathered for WTTC’s last Summit. But we are here in Manila to Rediscover Travel… together. Dear Members, Excellencies, WTTC Friends. I am honoured to address you at our 21st Global Summit and my first as President & CEO. In times of crisis we have seen the true grit and resilience of the Travel & Tourism sector. During the COVID pandemic our airlines transported vaccines and PPE; our airports became vaccination centres; and our cruise liners used their connections to help repatriate people. Hotels opened their doors to the homeless and today are giving shelter to 1000s of refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. The pandemic rewrote the rule book on how we live and how we travel. It showed how totally inter-reliant we are. Businesses and governments need each other to make travel happen. And our whole sector relies on the communities who host us. For over 30 years WTTC’s mission has been to highlight our sector’s economic and social value. But, it took a pandemic for leaders to really understand our worth.For almost a decade our sector’s growth outstripped that of the global economy. COVID changed all that. Now, recovery is in our sights. It is not uniform, it is faltering, but it IS recovery. Here in Asia-Pacific the reopening is just beginning. I congratulate the Philippines, a nation that has shown determination and courage to reignite travel. But the great powerhouse …

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