Global Compact and World Tourism Organization Launch TOURpact.GC - a New Framework for CSR in Tourism

(Lima, 27 September 2008) - TOURpact.GC was launched by the UN Global Compact and UNWTO, on the occasion of the official World Tourism Day (WTD) celebrations in Lima, Peru. It was welcomed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon as a leadership initiative with a potential for other sectors. It is a voluntary mechanism to provide a corporate social responsibility framework, open to Companies, Associations and other Tourism Stakeholders who are Affiliate Members of UNWTO.

TOURpact.GC reflects the aligned principles of the Global Compact and UNWTO’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism. The Global Compact is a voluntary initiative designed to mainstream ten key principles of social responsibility in business activity and to catalyze action to support the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Participants will make four Commitments:

1. To embrace the Principles of the initiative, which will be drafted on the basis of the UN Global Compact principles and the UNWTO Global Code of Ethics for Tourism.
2. To promote their awareness and implementation with business partners, in their supply chain, with customers and staff.
3. To use the logo and the collateral in their corporate social responsibility  campaigns.
4. To report annually on their plans and progress.

The complex interfaces within tourism markets and supply chains call for widespread coordination between institutions at local national and international levels, if quality products and services are to be delivered. This is even more challenging in poor countries, developing markets and small island states:

• TOURpact.GC seeks to strengthen these links through partnerships in the spirit of the MDGs.
• TOURpact.GC will help to drive a responsible tourism business agenda. We are committed to assist Tourism Companies and their Associations to make a valuable contribution to the countries and cultures in which they operate, to their customers, their shareholders and future generations.
• To this end we will promote the sound framework of Global Compact engagement models and the UNWTO ST-EP (Sustainable Tourism – Eliminating Poverty) and Davos Declaration Process.

UNWTO is the leading international tourism body. It advances responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism and in so doing promoting socioeconomic growth and people to people understanding. As the central and decisive tourism agency in the UN it strongly supports the MDGs. Its State Members as well as its Private Sector, Academic, Community and NGO Affiliate Members are committed to a Global Code of Ethics (GCE) and to Public/Private Partnerships (PPP’s) to deliver this kind of tourism.

Tourism is not only a major economic sector; it is one of the mainstays of international trade and a dynamic catalyst for many other sectors. Its role in environmental protection, in preserving biodiversity, in conserving cultural heritage, in promoting mutual understanding among peoples and peace among nations, is highly significant. Moreover it is a massive job creator with a particularly important role in building infrastructure and market opportunities in local communities in poor and developing countries.

Contact information:

Assistant Secretary-General and Spokesperson: Geoffrey Lipman
Media Officer: Marcelo Risi
T: +34 91-567-8178 /8100 - F: +34 91-567-8218
comm@UNWTO.org - www.UNWTO.org