Greece To Open First European Sustainable Tourism Observatory Under UNWTO Auspices

A Memorandum of Cooperation for the establishment of a National Sustainable Tourism Observatory in Greece, was signed by Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni and UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai, today, 27 March, in Izmir, Turkey.

The memorandum was signed on the sidelines of the 55th Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for Europe that is chaired by Greece.

Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni.

This is the first tourism observatory in Europe under the auspices of UNWTO and it will monitor the environmental, social and economic impacts of tourism in the archipelago and serve as a model to expand the concept to a national level.

The observatory will provide critical information to better manage the advancement of sustainability in one of the prime destinations of the Mediterranean.

According to Mrs. Kefalogianni, the tourism observatory will have a positive impact on the competitiveness of Greece’s tourism products.

“Tourism and the environment are interrelated concepts, the development of tourism depends directly on the environment,” she said.

The observatory in Greece joins the five existing sustainable tourism observatories established in China under the auspices of UNWTO.