Zurab Pololikashvili, the Secretary-General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization, led a delegation of the UNWTO to visit Hangzhou city on 23rd. Pololikashvili is the first head of United Nations agencies, as well as the first leading figure in world tourism, to visit China since it adjusted its pandemic prevention and control policies.

According to the data provided by the World Tourism Organization, China was the world's largest tourism market before the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, Chinese tourists made 166 million international trips, with a total tourism expenditure of 270 billion dollars. Most of their tourist destinations were developing economies.

The World Tourism Organization said that the recovery of China's domestic tourism industry would create a linkage effect for other economic sectors and bring greater vitality to China’s and even the global economy. According to the data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China, Chinese tourists made 6,01 billion domestic trips in 2019, making tourism an important driver of employment and economic growth.

Source: Chinanews.com