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Dubai: The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) predicts the world travel and tourism industry will grow at an annual rate of four per cent over the next decade, playing a crucial role in helping reduce poverty levels globally.
Speaking at the Eighth Global Travel and Tourism Summit, being held in Dubai, officials discussed ways the tourism sector can work with local governments around the world to alleviate poverty.
Norbert Walter, chief economist at Deutsche Bank Group, said although there has been continued slow growth in the old world, "We have an emerging world that is thriving".
According to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), a billion trips were made in 2006. World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) figures show that travel and tourism accounts for 10 per cent of the world's GDP and the industry provides jobs for 200 million people.
"The incorrect perception is that the travel and tourism industry is for the rich and for foreign investors. But corruption is a major challenge," said Dara Khosrowshahi, president and chief executive officer of Expedia Inc. And with developing countries bearing the brunt of current high food costs and high energy costs, the issue of poverty is becoming more urgent.
Khosrowshahi said the food price crisis is "the most difficult and least anticipated". The recent riots in Egypt over subsidised bread is a stark sign of how rising food prices are affecting developing countries, in particular. According to the United Nations, around 37 nations are currently facing a food crisis.
Travel and tourism have ripple effects in both domestic and international spheres. On a local level, tourism can provide employment opportunities which will pump money back into the economy.
Edouard Ettedgui, group chief executive of Mandarin Oriental Hotels said travel and tourism is a "fragmented industry" with lots of small players which all affect the local community and the people in it. "Cities have a clearer vision and that's where we can start to act," he said.
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Jabu Mabuza, chairman of South Africa Tourism said South Africa is trying to drive economic growth through tourism to bring benefits to the larger part of its population. "It [tourism] has taken its toll on infrastructure and four million houses have had to be linked to the electricity grid. Tourism is a driver of growth and can help address poverty and make a meaningful contribution to our GDP," said Mabuza.
With around 90 per cent of Dubai's workforce being foreign, Mabuza voiced concerns that indigenous countries, like India, will try and entice their workers back. "Economies cannot survive on expat labour," he said.
Arthur de Haast, global chief executive of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels said, "The Middle East market, especially Dubai and the UAE, is very dependent on migrant labour. But, with hotels opening in India, for example, will they try and poach the people here and entice them back home? I see that as a big challenge."
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