World Tourism Day Is African Travel Commission Gift To The World – ATC Boss

Since 1980, the United Nations World Tourism Organization has celebrated World Tourism Day as international observances on September 27. This date was chosen as on that day in 1970, the agreement of the World Tourism Organisation [WTO], now United Nations World Tourism Organisation [UNWTO], again renamed ‘UN’ Tourism was adopted.

The adoption of the agreement is considered a milestone in global tourism. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness on the role of tourism within the international community and to demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide.

The late Ignatius Amaduwa Atigbi, a Nigerian national, was the one who proposed the idea of marking September 27 of every year as World Tourism Day.

Meanwhile, after a 45-year hiatus, the African Travel Commission [ATC], was revived and now repositioned to promote intra-Africa travel and tourism activities; as well as, to the rest of the world.

Lucky Onoriode George, Executive Director of ATC, said that Africa has now found its voice following the revival of the once-powerful continental body that helped shape global tourism activities between 1965 and 1975.

He noted that ATC was established as a regional voice for Africa, and due to the reforms it initiated then, the International Union of Official Travel Organizations [IUOTO] was transformed into World Tourism Organization [WTO] before it was retransformed in 2014 into the United Nations World Tourism Organization [UNWTO].

ATC’s contributions also led IUOTO to initiate September 27 every year as the globally celebrated World Tourism Day.

The ATC Executive Director reiterated that the newly revived commission, working with stakeholders in both the private and public sectors in the tourism industry on the continent would actualize the dreams of improving intra-African tourism.

ATC is now a Non-Profit Organization [NPO] established to provide a platform where tourism officials and business professionals could meet and collaborate; as well as, connect experts and stakeholders that have shared vision across the travel and tourism industry in Africa.

Following a final push by a letter written by the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation in 2006, orchestrated by a Nigerian travel and tourism journalist, Lucky Onoriode George, now the Executive Director of the African Travel Commission [ATC], to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation [UNWTO], on the need to honour late Ignatius Amaduwa Atigbi, a Nigerian who proposed the idea of marking September 27 of every year as World Tourism Day, the UNWTO finally honoured Atigbi at the 2009 International World Tourism Day Celebrations in Accra, Ghana.

By Lucky Onoriode George, Executive Director, African Travel Commission [ATC] www.africantravelcommission.org