121st Session of the UN Tourism Executive Council held in Barcelona with a focus on innovation and resilience

The 121st session of the Executive Council was held in Barcelona on June 10th and 11th, 2024, bringing together leading experts in the field of tourism. The session was attended by representatives from 47 countries, including 18 ministers of tourism, with the aim of enhancing the vision for the sector as it fully recovers from the pandemic's impacts.

At the opening of the session, the importance of innovation and directing investments into the sector to encourage a positive transformation focused on building greater resilience to future crises was highlighted. It was emphasized that tourism growth should benefit everyone, particularly through better education, more job opportunities, and the use of new technologies.

Presented Reports and Plans
The session presented a report summarizing the Organization's achievements since the last Council meeting, with a special focus on joint investment priorities in tourism, education, and innovation in the sector.

The work plan of the Agenda for Europe was adopted, including three projects aimed at the future of winter tourism destinations, the regulation of short-term rental platforms, and strategies to mitigate the effects of green investments on small and medium-sized enterprises in tourism.

Agenda for Europe
The Agenda for Europe is an initiative by Greece that allows the use of part of the Organization's budget financed by European countries through their annual membership fees.

Hosts of Future Sessions
Members also confirmed the hosts of the next sessions of the Executive Council, with the 122nd session to be held in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, the 123rd in Spain in the first half of 2025, and the 124th session to be held in the second half of 2025 in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Croatia's Role in UN Tourism
The Republic of Croatia has been a member of UN Tourism since 1993 and is a current member of the Executive Council (2021-2025). Additionally, it is a member of the Committee on Tourism and Sustainability (2023-2027), where it also serves as vice-chair.