LONDON, 1 November 2021: The World Travel & Tourism Council confirms the 22nd Global Summit will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at the end of 2022.
WTTC’s annual Global Summit is the world’s most influential and Travel & Tourism event. Saudi Arabia has been leading a new global approach to ‘redesign tourism’ and this summit in Riyadh will see industry leaders gathering with key government representatives to drive support for the sector’s ongoing recovery, moving it to a more safer, resilient, inclusive and sustainable future.
The event in Saudi Arabia will follow the next highly anticipated Global Summit which is taking place in Manila, Philippines, from 14 to 16 March 2022.
Speaking from the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, WTTC President & CEO Julia Simpson said: “Since the very beginning, when the pandemic brought international travel to an almost complete standstill, Saudi Arabia has shown its commitment to our sector, ensuring it has remained at the forefront of the global agenda.
Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Tourism, Al Khateeb added: “I welcome the decision to choose Saudi Arabia as the host country for the next WTTC Global Summit in 2022. This is a critical forum for the private sector and government to come together to redesign tourism for the future, and it is fantastic to hold this event in the Kingdom. This is recognition of Saudi leadership to help the global tourism sector recover, and importantly, become more sustainable. I look forward to welcoming all WTTC Members next year.”
To coincide with the announcement, the latest research from WTTC shows the Middle Eastern Travel & Tourism sector is set to grow by 27.1% this year ahead of Europe and Latin America.
The research also shows that if governments prioritise Travel & Tourism, jobs in the sector could reach 6.6m in 2022, approaching pre-pandemic levels.
