Georgian Foreign Minister Participates in UNWTO 22nd General Assembly
Mikheil Janelidze, Georgia’s Vice-Premier and Foreign Minister, is taking part in the 22nd General Assembly of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
The event takes place on September 12-15 in Chengdu, China and gathers around 1500 delegates from 150 countries across the world.
Georgia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) reports that on the sidelines of the General Assembly, Mikheil Janelidze held a brief meeting with representatives of the Chinese Authorities.
“Highlighting the importance of developing people-to-people contacts and co-operation in tourism, the Chinese side thanked the Georgian delegation for participation in the General Assembly,” the ministry stated.
The 22nd session of the General Assembly is themed “Tourism and the Sustainable Development Goals – Journey to 2030”.
The United Nations 70th General Assembly has designated 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.
The UNWTO, the United Nations Specialized Agency for Tourism, has been mandated to facilitate the organization and implementation of the International Year, in collaboration with governments, relevant organizations of the United Nations system, international and regional organizations and other relevant stakeholders.
The 22nd General Assembly will approve candidacy for the post of UNWTO Secretary-General for the period 2018-2021.
Georgian MFA reports that the 105th session of the UNWTO Executive Council, meeting in Madrid, Spain, on 12 May 2017, recommended Zurab Pololikashvili, Ambassador of Georgia to Spain, as a nominee for the post of Secretary-General for the four-year-period starting January 2018. The Head of the Georgian National Tourism Administration Giorgi Chogovadze also attends the General Assembly.
Wishing success 2 the nominee @pololikashvili 2 the post of #UNWTO Gen.Sec. His contribution to #Georgia's tourism develop. is great pic.twitter.com/34gzwwuwtW
— Mikheil Janelidze (@JanelidzeMkh) September 13, 2017
By Thea Morrison