The World Tourism Organization is a UN Specialized
Agency that serves as a global forum for tourism
policy issues and a practical source of tourism know-how.
Its Members include 149 countries and territories
as well as over 350 Affiliate Members from the public
and private sectors. WTO's mission is to promote
and develop tourism in a sustainable way as a significant
means of fostering international peace and understanding,
economic development and international trade.
"Tourism, composed of a wide network of micro, small and medium sized enterprises,
has a great potential to contribute to poverty reduction by creating job and
income opportunities. Considering that for small tourism businesses the start-up
costs and barriers to entry are relatively low, microcredit represents a viable
support mechanism for them. Therefore, WTO is glad to join in the activities
of this International Year in order to foster the use of microcredit in the tourism
sector, aiming at reaching the main UN Millennium Development Goal of poverty
alleviation."
-- Francesco Frangialli, Secretary-General of the
World Tourism Organization
Sustainable Development of Tourism Department
Tel: (+34) 91-567-8225
Fax: (+34) 91-571-3733
