Chairman of China UnionPay Ge Huayong (right) met with Secretary-General of UNWTO Taleb Rifai (left)

On September 13, Chairman of China UnionPay Ge Huayong met with Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Taleb Rifai at the 22nd General Assembly Session of UNWTO. The two exchanged opinions on promoting the sustainable development of tourism by offering secure and convenient payment services, and have reached a consensus on further deepening the strategic cooperation between UnionPay International and UNWTO.

Mr. Ge said, the development of tourism is dependent upon the external environment in that factors such as international relations, regional conditions, economic fluctuation and ecological alteration may impact the development of tourism. It is of great significance that this UNWTO General Assembly pivots around the theme of promoting sustainable development of tourism. Since inking a Memorandum of Understanding with UNWTO in November 2014, UnionPay has taken multiple measures to fulfill its commitments, promoting secure and convenient payment services to provide fundamental support for sustainable tourism and to improve tourists’ payment experiences.

Mr. Rifai highly recognized the achievements UnionPay made in tourism in China and the world, and appreciated the efforts Mr. Ge has made as the “Special Ambassador of International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development” since this February. He said, he is glad to see that China is playing a leading role in the world’s tourism. Given that payment service is crucial to the development of tourism, he hopes that UnionPay will go on promoting sustainable tourism and social progress by offering better payment services.

As stressed by Mr. Ge, UnionPay will strengthen its cross-over collaboration with government departments, organizations and travel agencies, in promoting the integrative development of the tourism and payment industries, providing tailored tourist and payment products with deeper understanding of customers’ traveling and spending habits, and offering safer, convenient and innovative UnionPay payment services to better support environment protection and consumption upgrade to contribute to social progress.

On the same evening, a UnionPay-sponsored dinner party was held, where Ge Huayong delivered a speech. More than 250 representatives from over 120 countries attended the dinner party.

On September 13, the 22nd General Assembly Session of UNWTO was held in Chengdu. The UNWTO General Assembly is the highest-standard conference in the world’s tourism, and was attended by ministers and officials from over 120 countries and regions. 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.

2017 is decided as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations, and it will promote tourism’s role in the following five key areas: inclusive and sustainable economic growth; social inclusiveness, employment and poverty reduction; resource efficiency, environmental protection and climate change; cultural values, diversity and heritage; mutual understanding, peace and security. In this February, Ge Huayong is named the “Special Ambassador of the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017” and is the only special ambassador from China.