Crisis Preparedness, Management & Recovery

The world is increasingly intricate and interconnected, requiring us to be crisis-ready. The question today is not if but rather when the next crisis will take place. Interestingly, the biggest risk is often not the crisis itself, but rather the preparation, management, and response.

While our sector has proven its resilience time and time again, destinations and the private sector alike can learn from the experiences of others to minimise the possible impact of crises. It is essential that the public and private sectors come together so as to enhance their preparedness to mitigate the impact of a crisis, better manage to effectively address a crisis, and enhance their responsiveness through strong policies to ensure a speedy recovery.

Given our sector’s vested interest in mitigating the impact of shocks and ensuring a swift recovery when a crisis does happen, WTTC partnered with Global Rescue, to provide the Travel & Tourism sector with an understanding of the emerging, ongoing and escalating risks ahead, and to equip the public and private sectors with tools, protocols, and solutions to support them in preparing for and responding to crises.

COVID-19

As the representative organisation for the global Travel & Tourism private sector, WTTC is leading the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. We have been bringing together WTTC Members, Industry Associations, and international organisations together to create a joint private/public approach and lead the sector's recovery.

Caribbean Recovery

Travel & Tourism is one of the most important economic sectors in the Caribbean, accounting for 13.9% of regional GDP and supporting 15.2% of jobs. However, for many Caribbean economies, Travel & Tourism accounts for more than 25% of GDP, making it a critical generator of economic growth and provider of livelihoods. It is therefore vital to the Caribbean economy that Travel & Tourism recovers as quickly as possible from the damage caused by the unusually severe hurricanes of 2017 – most notably Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September.

This report by WTTC assesses the immediate and long-term impact of the 2017 hurricane season on the Travel & Tourism sector across the Caribbean region and on specific islands, as well as recommended government policies and marketing strategies for recovery.

Pandemics

WTTC co-chairs the cross-sectoral Travel, Tourism & Outbreaks working group with the World Economic Forum and the World Health Organization. The group works to improve decision-making, coordination, and communications within and between the public and private sectors in the event of a disease outbreak.

Past outbreaks have had significant negative consequences for the Travel & Tourism sector. WTTC works with key stakeholders to find the best ways to minimise the impact of a pandemic both in terms of risk containment and to counter the negative effects on the Travel & Tourism sector.