"More Than 50 Countries Sign UN Sustainable Tourism Declaration"

"BAKU - More than 50 governments have signed a U.N. declaration to make tourism around the globe more climate friendly, the United Nations said on Wednesday, in what it hailed as a major achievement of the climate summit in Azerbaijan.

"At COP29 we have achieved today an historic milestone by being included in the UN Climate Change Conference Action Agenda for the first time," U.N. Executive Director for Tourism Zoritsa Urosevic told a news conference.

The global tourism industry accounts for 3% of global GDP and is the source of 8.8% of greenhouse emissions, said Urosevic.

The countries that signed the declaration on Enhanced Climate Action on Tourism have pledged to recognise the need to address tourism when drafting climate plans, such as their Nationally Determined Contributions. The next update of NDCs, in which governments describe policies to reduce emissions that cause global warming, are due in February."

Karin Strohecker reports for Reuters November 20, 2024.

Source: Reuters, 11/21/2024