Representatives of more than 20 cities and government bodies signed a joint declaration at UNWTO Mayors Forum - ?Cities For All: Building cities for citizens and visitors? which took place in Lisbon, Portugal on April 5.
The representatives included Barcelona, Bruges, Brussels, Dubrovnik, Helsinki, Krakow, Madrid, Moscow, Paris, Porto, Prague, Punta del Este, Lisbon, Tbilisi, S?o Paulo and Seoul; the Secretariat of Tourism of Argentina and the Secretariat of Tourism of Spain; the Ministry of Economy of Portugal, UNESCO, UN-Habitat, the World Bank, and the European Committee of the Regions.
The annual forum hosted in Lisbon for the first time brought together more than 20 representatives from major global cities and organisations to jointly demonstrate the need to ensure that urban tourism policies are aligned with the United Nations New Urban Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
According to the United Nations, in 2015, 54% of the world?s population lived in urban areas and that by 2030 this share is expected to grow to 60%.
The pledge specifically sought to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. The cities also committed to investing in technology and innovations to better plan, measure and manage urban tourism and promoting evidence-based decisions and planning on key issues such as carrying capacity, housing, mobility, management of natural and cultural resources and residents? attitudes towards tourism - while respecting visitors privacy.
