The West African Monetary and Economic Union (UEMOA) and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) have inked an agreement to strengthen their working relationship in Madrid, Spain.
The agreement is premised on a continued close working relationship between the two international organizations, with the latest engagement being the collaboration to develop a tourism satellite account and white paper on tourism and security in the UEMOA region.
Speaking at the signing of the agreement, the Secretary General of UNWTO, Zurab Pololikashvili recalled the excellent working relationship his outfit has had with UEMOA in the previous years. He was confident the inking of the formal agreement will ensure the benefit of both parties and member states.
He outlined UNWTO’s work in Africa and mentioned areas that they can collaborate to maximize the impact.
In a tweet, the Secretary-General said he was “very excited to sign this agreement with UEMOA and work together on renewed marketing strategies, risk management and statistics to create efficient tourism destinations in the continent.”
The Commissioner in charge of Human Development at UEMOA, Mamadù Serifo Jaquite, expressed appreciation to the UN Tourism Organization for its commitment to helping the region develop its tourism potential.
The Commissioner said that he hopes the challenges of UEMOA will be addressed with the white paper.
Serifo Jaquite added that the Union recognised the importance of tourism and creative industries to its member states and it was for this reason they are participating at this year’s FITUR 2023.
Present at the signing ceremony were tourism ministers and ambassadors from the UEMOA region.
At the same ceremony, the International Code for the Protection of Tourists (ICPT) was presented to the UEMOA delegation
