São Paulo – World tourism has attained an all-time high: one billion people have travelled to foreign countries in 2012 as of last Thursday (13). In a press statement, the United Nations Tourism World Tourism Organization (UNTWO) informed that tourism has remained bullish despite the economic crisis scenario, and that this goes to show how strong the tourism industry is within the world economy.
According to UNTWO figures, the industry employs one in every twelve people, generates 9% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and aoccunts for 8% of exports from less developed countries. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), each job created in tourism leads to 1.5 job being created in other industries.
In 2012, 53% of international tourists were from Europe, 22% were from Asia, 17% were from the Americas, 4% were from the Middle East and 3% were from Africa. Europe was also the destination of most tourists (51%); 22% went to Asia, 16% to the Americas, 6% to the Middle East and 5% to Africa. According to the UNTWO, 51% of tourists went on leisure trips, 27% went visiting family, and 15% were business travellers.
The survey also shows that nearly half the travellers were from emerging countries. In the 1980s, this type of traveller comprised less than 25% of the total. In 2011, the UNTWO counted 982 million tourists, up 4.6% from 939 million in 2010, which was already a 6% increase from 2009. In 2012, the growth rate is expected to be between 3% and 4% compared with worldwide tourist flow in 2011.
The UNTWO secretary general, Taleb Rifai, said the tourist flow figure is a “landmark” and sent a message to tourists from around the world. “Your actions count. That is our message to the one billion tourists. Through the right actions and choices, each tourist represents an opportunity for a fairer, more sustainable future,” he said. Although the UNTWO declared that it is impossible to know exactly where the billionth tourist would arrive, it picked the symbolic date of last Thursday (13th) and the city of Madrid, Spain, to celebrate it.
In Brazil, tourism is also on an upswing, according to Tourism Ministry figures. In 2011, the industry grew by 6% in the country, which is twice the global rate of 3%. It creates approximately 2.8 million jobs and accounts for 3.7% of the GDP.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
