The Indian tourism industry is set to grow tremendously! According to Julia Simpson, the President of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), it will reach a value of USD 523 billion in the next ten years. Currently, it’s worth about USD 256 billion and gives jobs to 45 million people.
Tourism is important for India, making up around 7% of the country’s economy. In 2019, it was worth USD 211 billion. Despite growing, tourism in India contributes to around 5% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, which is about 250 billion kilograms of carbon dioxide each year. This makes India’s tourism sector the third largest contributor to emissions, after the US and China. However, there’s good news! While tourism is growing, the emissions are not increasing at the same pace. This shows that India is becoming more efficient in travel and tourism.
Julia also expressed the need for sustainable aviation fuel since flying is a big part of tourism. She encourages the Indian government to support the production of this fuel, allowing for more eco-friendly travel.
The travel and tourism sector provides many job opportunities, from engineers and technology experts to those entering the workforce for the first time. About half of all global tourism happens in coastal areas, which are at risk from climate change. To protect these beautiful beaches, cities like Miami invest in reinforcing their coastlines and improving infrastructure for extreme weather.
Visitors want to enjoy India’s natural beauty, not just tall buildings. Therefore, WTTC wants to work with the Indian government to help restore nature along the coast. Julia believes a big step for India is to quickly reduce pollution from road transport. Prime Minister Modi is focused on cleaning up air pollution and moving towards renewable energy. She believes that under his leadership, India will become one of the most advanced developing economies in the world
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