(Madrid) – The number of international tourists reached 1.13 billion in 2014, 51 million more than in 2013, on trend for the fifth consecutive year of above average growth since the 2009 economic crisis, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, UNWTO, has announced.
“Over the past years, tourism has proven to be a surprisingly strong and resilient economic activity and a fundamental contributor to the economic recovery by generating billions of dollars in exports and creating millions of jobs, said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, at the opening of the Spain Global Tourism Forum in Madrid.
He added, “This has been true for destinations all around the world, but particularly for Europe, as the region struggles to consolidate its way out of one of the worst economic periods in its history.” According to the latest UNWTO figures, the Americas (+7 percent) and Asia and the Pacific (+5 percent) regions registered the strongest growth, while Europe (+4 percent), the Middle East (+4 percent) and Africa (+2 percent) grew at a slightly more modest pace.
By subregion, North America (+8 percent) saw the best results, followed by North-East Asia, South Asia, Southern and Mediterranean Europe, Northern Europe and the Caribbean, all increasing by 7 percent.
The outlook remains positive for 2015, as confirmed by the UNWTO Confidence Index.
(Courtesy WAM)
