NAIROBI, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- The fourth Global Tourism Resilience Day Conference and Expo opened on Monday in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, with a focus on promoting the resilience of the global tourism sector.
The three-day conference, organized by the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Center, brought together more than 200 policymakers, industry leaders, development partners and investors to explore solutions to overcome disruptions in the tourism sector.
Rebecca Miano, Kenya's cabinet secretary of tourism and wildlife, said that threats facing the tourism sector range from physical challenges to reputational risks caused by misinformation and cybercrime, which can shift demand.
"Kenya is implementing specific crisis management systems, such as early warning tools, to support the recovery of the tourism sector," Miano said.
Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica's minister of tourism, said that tourism resilience should be treated as a pillar of global sustainability because it protects livelihoods and shields vulnerable countries.
Lloyd Waller, executive director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Center, said the world is now in an era in which extreme weather events, such as floods and droughts, disrupt tourism activities.
Denay Jock Chagor, South Sudan's minister of wildlife conservation and tourism, highlighted the need for regional cooperation to build an adaptive tourism system capable of withstanding future shocks.
The conference is expected to produce concrete outcomes, including a "Resilience in Action" report, launch new measurement indicators and forge cross-sectoral partnerships aimed at future-proofing tourism against emerging threats. ■