World Indigenous Tourism Summit ends

Published on : Tuesday, April 24, 2018

 
This year’s summit was opened at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, a place that is sacred to New Zealanders as the site of the signing of Whakaputanga, the Declaration of Independence, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

 
New Zealand Māori Tourism and the World Indigenous Tourism Alliance put up a marvellous work in organizing an event of this scale and significance.

 
Many delegates also travelled long distances to be in Aotearoa for this summit and make important contributions to the kōrero.

 
Such summits are important for generating ideas and sharing stories from indigenous communities around the world.

 
Summits like these ensure that there is a future in Aotearoa where Māori tourism operators are leading innovators, investors and entrepreneurs.

 
In Aotearoa, the tourism industry can and does leverage off Māori culture, and Māori can leverage off tourism.

 
There were many challenges in the rapid tourism growth in New Zealand. International visitor numbers have increased by 6.5 per cent on an annual basis in the past five years, reaching 3.7 million in 2017. Tourism directly and indirectly employs about 1 in 7 working New Zealanders and contributes $14.7 billion to national GDP.