24 February 2010: The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) supported the first T.20 meeting of ministers and high-level officials, which convened in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 22-24 February 2010, to discuss the economic recovery and the transformation towards a greener and more sustainable economy.

The UNWTO welcomed the outcomes of the meeting as a major contribution to the process of the Roadmap for Recovery recently approved by the UNWTO General Assembly. The meeting concluded with the adoption of a T.20 joint communiqué in which ministers and high officials recommend, inter alia, engaging and partnering with the international community, international and intergovernmental bodies, private sector organizations, as well as national governments and regional organizations, to: advance tourism’s role in stimulating the global economy; enhancing employment; creating decent jobs; alleviating poverty; supporting development; and transforming progressively into a greener, more sustainable economy.
Meeting participants included representatives from the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and the International Trade Centre (ITC). [UNWTO Press Release][T.20 Joint Communiqué]