Phillip Modise 
It has recently been a significant step forward for Rwanda at the 25th Session of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) General Assembly in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on October 16–20, 2023.
During this gathering, Rwanda was elected to join the Executive Council’s 2023–2027 term of the United Nations World Tourism Organization. Rwanda’s position as a new member of the Executive Council was ratified during the 120th session, which sets a promising path for our contribution to the global tourism industry.
Chief Tourism Officer at Rwanda Board, Michaella Rugwinzangoga state,
UNWTO is the leading agency promoting responsible, sustainable, and universally accessible tourism worldwide and it’s a pivotal step for Rwanda to be a part of its Executive Council.
Other New Members welcomed
The 120th session of the Executive Council was held in a clear spirit of international friendship and collaboration. In Samarkand, the Council thanked its outgoing Members for their service and active participation in helping guide the Organization over the past four years. Members also welcomed the new Members of the Council, namely Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, China, Colombia, Czechia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Republic of Korea, Lithuania, Nigeria, Namibia and Tanzania,
Saudi Arabia to continue as Chair
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will continue as Chair as the Executive Council for 2024. His Excellency Ahmed Al Khateeb, Minister of Tourism for Saudi Arabia, thanked all Members for their support and reaffirmed his commitment to advancing shared priorities and the Programme of Work. Secretary-General Pololikashvili thanked Saudi Arabia for their continued leadership and for his consistent and ongoing active support of the tourism sector.
Members also endorsed the Democratic Republic of Congo to serve as First Vice-Chair of the Council, and for Jamaica to serve as Second Vice-Chair.
Subsidiary bodies and looking ahead
The Council fulfilled its statutory obligations with elections to its subsidiary bodies, with a commitment to fair and equal representation of all global regions. Members voted on the countries that will serve on the UNWTO Programme and Budget Committee until 2025 or 2027, including representatives of the non-Council Member States and from the Affiliate Members Network. The composition of the Council’s Committees on statistics, competitiveness, sustainability and online education were also determined.
To conclude the meeting, Members agreed that the 121st Session of the UNWTO Executive Council will take place in Prague, Czechia, in the first semester of 2024.
