Sustainable and Resilient Tourism and Sustainable Development in Central America and the Dominican Republic

A/RES/78/145View PDF

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 18Sustainable development, published in 2023.

What other versions does this mandate have?

2 versions · 2023–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/134

2025A/RES/80/134Sustainable and resilient tourism and sustainable development in Central America and the Dominican RepublicLatestCompare with previous version
2023A/RES/78/145Sustainable and resilient tourism and sustainable development in Central America and the Dominican Republic

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

8 topics

Central America Dominican Republic Ecotourism Regional Cooperation Sustainable Development Tourism Tourism Development Tourism Policy

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

2 reports of the Secretary-General submitted under this mandate, 2025.

2025A/80/268Restoring predictability for prosperity : a rules-based trading system aligned with development goals report of the Secretary-General
2025A/80/267Sustainable and resilient tourism and sustainable development in Central America and the Dominican Republic report of the Secretary-General

Identified automatically from the metadata in each report’s UN Digital Library catalogue record.

What does this mandate say?

35 operative paragraphs

Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on sustainable tourism and sustainable development in Central America;

Recognizes the major role that sustainable and resilient tourism plays in advancing towards the achievement of sustainable development of the States members of the Central American Integration System, as an instrument of social inclusion that generates decent jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities, contributing to inclusive economic growth and the improvement of the quality of life of the population, aimed at achieving poverty eradication in all its forms and dimensions, and that it contributes to the promotion of climate resilience, environmental sustainability and disaster risk management in tourist activities and destinations;

Emphasizes, taking into account the fact that the tourism sector is vulnerable to natural hazards and disasters, including those that are climate-related, the need to foster resilient tourism development in the Central American Integration System region, including through national strategies for rehabilitation aftershocks, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction plans and public-private partnerships;

Recognizes that since the adoption of resolution 76/201 in 2021, despite the many challenges they have faced owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, Central America and the Dominican Republic have shown numerous positive developments, initiatives and efforts to promote sustainable tourism and sustainable development, making significant progress towards recovery and enhancing resilience, recognizing the implementation of policies at the national level, and employing an integrated and holistic approach for the promotion of sustainable tourism and sustainable development to generate benefits in the social, economic and environmental pillars;

Encourages strategic actions and accelerators to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on sustainable development and to promote a sustainable recovery in the tourism sector, through global and regional political action and coordination to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and support the recovery therefrom, which will require substantial financial efforts to rebuild a more resilient, diversified, inclusive and sustainable tourism sector;

Recalls the adoption of the principles of sustainable tourism, developed by the Central American Tourism Integration Secretariat and found in its strategic plan for sustainable tourism development, 2021–2025, which captures the region’s vision of itself as an integrated, sustainable, multi-location, cross-border destination of high quality and emphasizes its action plan for tourism and climate change as a component of the regional strategy on climate change;

Recognizes that the tourism sector has been a catalyst for achieving sustainable development in its three dimensions in Central America and the Dominican Republic, including addressing environmental issues, in particular climate change, poverty eradication and economic development, highlighting the importance of strengthening appropriate policies and financial support within a broader framework of sustainable development policies and of adopting a comprehensive, multisectoral approach for the sustainable development of tourism;

Encourages regional and national tourism organizations to promote destination models that seek the highest possible direct benefits for local and national economies, in order to contribute to improving quality of life and reducing poverty in local communities, taking into account the integration of sustainability policies in the tourism sector, and invites all stakeholders to identify, assess and mitigate the impacts of tourism on the three dimensions of sustainable development;

Stresses the importance of biocultural heritage, endogenous development, scientific research and replicable models to promote sustainable, community-based, rural and local tourism activities for the benefit of people and nature, in close collaboration with Indigenous Peoples and youth, as a priority for the Central American Integration System region, recognizes that some countries in the region are developing new and innovative models, such as the tourism, conservation and sustainable livelihoods model, and also recognizes the importance of strengthening efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage, as well as promoting the participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the protection of cultural and traditional knowledge and practices for the achievement of a more sustainable tourism sector;

Recognizes the valuable role of international cooperation with relevant partners, and encourages them to continue to support the implementation of various projects aimed at promoting sustainable tourism in the region by, inter alia, strengthening ecotourism, rural, cultural and heritage tourism, including colonial sites, preventing trafficking in cultural artefacts and ensuring respect for intangible cultural heritage and cultural and natural sites;

Encourages Member States and relevant stakeholders to support cooperatives, community-based organizations and micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises with initiatives towards achieving a stronger business environment, technical assistance, institutional networking and capacity-building and by enhancing institutional coherence policy that supports funding mechanisms and initiatives for poverty eradication programmes and projects;

Welcomes the progress made by the States members of the Central American Integration System in converging towards a regional tourism strategy based on preserving the region’s biodiversity and natural and cultural attractions and reducing poverty through employment and entrepreneurial tourism development that emphasizes micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, while addressing the adverse effects of climate change, to improve the quality of life of the region’s inhabitants;

Appreciates the continued efforts of the States members of the Central American Integration System to support sustainable tourism development, including the adoption and implementation of new legislation and policies, and encourages them to use sustainable tourism as a tool to promote the eradication of poverty and enhance the protection of biodiversity, cultural heritage and community development;

Encourages cooperation to promote the engagement of women, youth, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities, and initiatives that foster their socioeconomic empowerment through sustainable tourism that continues to promote equitable partnerships, the creation of jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities;

Recognizes the important efforts made by the Central American Integration System region to include those in vulnerable situations in decision-making in the tourism sector, with a more decentralized and participatory approach, especially rural and local communities and Indigenous Peoples, aiming also to advance the empowerment of women and girls and provide opportunities for youth, and calls upon the international community to support local, rural and community-based tourism initiatives to ensure that tourism continues to support economic growth and sustainable development;

Also recognizes the continued need to support sustainable tourism activities and relevant capacity-building efforts that promote environmental awareness, conserve and protect the environment, respect wildlife, biodiversity, ecosystems and cultural diversity and improve the welfare and livelihoods of local communities by supporting their local economies and the human and natural environment as a whole;

Notes the importance of adequately measuring the sociocultural and environmental impact of tourism, and encourages efforts to fill the present data gap in this area by taking advantage of the emergence of non-traditional solutions and sources of data, with an overarching goal of advancing the national sustainable development agenda beyond the tourism sector;

Recognizes that the implementation of sustainable consumption and production patterns in the tourism sector in Central America, and hence advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the region, requires, inter alia, the identification and adoption of more resource-efficient tourism planning approaches by all relevant stakeholders;

Stresses the need to promote the further development of sustainable tourism, in particular through the consumption of sustainable tourism products and services, and to strengthen the development of ecotourism, maintaining, in particular, the culture and environmental integrity of Indigenous and local communities and enhancing the protection of ecologically sensitive areas and the natural heritage and Indigenous cultural and religious sites of those communities;

Invites Governments and other stakeholders to join the Sustainable Tourism Programme of the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns, which aims at promoting innovation and circular thinking to accelerate resource efficiency in the tourism value chain;

Notes with appreciation the launch of the first phase of the Tourism Observatory of the Central American Integration System Region in June 2023, and looks forward to its completion, and invites Governments and other stakeholders to consider joining the International Network of Sustainable Tourism Observatories of the World Tourism Organization, which contributes to the promotion of economically, socially and environmentally sustainable tourism, and to support the practice of informed policymaking around the world;

Encourages further collaboration by public-private partnerships towards the enhancement of quality data collection, including disaggregated data, in accordance with national legislation, taking into account the concerted efforts by national authorities of the States members of the Central American Integration System, in conjunction with the private sector, through the establishment of observatories for sustainable tourism to monitor the development of tourism at the destination level in order to provide timely information for evidence-based policies and decision-making;

Urges the tourism sector in the States members of the Central American Integration System to be part of the coordination, knowledge-sharing and communication mechanisms for security and emergency management at the national and regional levels and to collectively promote an evidence-based approach in developing measures for safe, secure and seamless travel, which will enable government agencies to make relevant, informed and coordinated decisions, and in that sense welcomes the progress of the Secretary-General’s call to protect everyone on Earth through universal coverage of early warning systems, including through the Early Warning for All initiative;

Welcomes the efforts of the World Tourism Organization, the United Nations Environment Programme, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, regional commissions and other regional organizations, as well as the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, to promote sustainable tourism worldwide;

Invites Member States and other stakeholders and the World Tourism Organization to continue to support the activities undertaken by the States members of the Central American Integration System for the promotion of sustainable tourism in the region, including with regard to emergency preparedness for better disaster risk reduction, the vulnerabilities of the Central American Integration System region to disasters caused by natural hazards and their impacts on sustainable tourism, as well as for capacity-building, job creation and the promotion of local culture and products, and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals;

Invites Member States and relevant stakeholders to welcome the many opportunities that the new digital transformation of the tourism sector offers for creating and implementing innovative technologies to modernize the tourism industry in the States members of the Central American Integration System, by creating momentum for economic growth and expanding opportunities, including for women and young people, harnessing digital technology, fostering innovation and training and building human capacity, for the successful recovery and resilience of the tourism sector;

Encourages the States members of the Central American Integration System, through the Central American Tourism Council and the Central American Tourism Integration Secretariat, to promote sustainable tourism by intensifying bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation at the level of the tourism industry, and to continue to support sustainable tourism through policies that foster responsive and inclusive tourism, strengthen regional identity and protect their natural and cultural heritage, including their ecosystems and biodiversity, and notes that existing initiatives, such as the One Planet Sustainable Tourism Programme, among other international initiatives, can deliver direct and focused support to Governments;

Also encourages the States members of the Central American Integration System to establish and strengthen quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, emphasizing the need to promote investments in infrastructure that are socially, economically and environmentally sustainable, so as to promote sustainable tourism in the region;

Reiterates the commitment to the development of sustainable regional infrastructure projects that stimulate sustainable economic productivity, promoting equitable growth of regions across the urban-rural continuum, and encourages urban-rural interactions and connectivity by strengthening sustainable transport and mobility, and technology and communications networks and infrastructure, including connectivity between cities and their surroundings, peri-urban and rural areas, as well as greater land-sea connections, where appropriate, and encourages the development of tourism infrastructure and the promotion of tourism diversification, including through public-private partnerships, as a way to foster job creation for local communities, the preservation of their way of life, culture and heritage and the promotion of the three dimensions of sustainable development, while simultaneously inviting Member States to take measures to protect the environment and the sociocultural heritage of a destination;

Recognizes that persons with disabilities have equal rights to access tourism services and opportunities, such as independent travel, accessible services, trained staff, reliable information and inclusive marketing, and that great efforts should be made to ensure that tourism policies and practices are inclusive of persons with disabilities, the majority of whom live in developing countries;

Calls upon Member States and the tourism sector to take effective measures, in the context of sustainable tourism, including ecotourism initiatives, to help to promote the equal participation of women and the balanced participation of youth, older persons, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities, at all levels and in decision-making processes in all areas, and to promote effective economic empowerment, mainly through decent job and income creation;

Recognizes that addressing the need for improved monitoring of the development impacts of tourism requires rethinking and changing traditional practices in order to incorporate multiple data sources to provide public administrations and the tourism sector with the most updated intelligence on tourism, and notes the progress achieved through the International Network of Sustainable Tourism Observatories of the World Tourism Organization, which is focused on continuously monitoring the impacts of tourism, tackling the three dimensions of sustainability, strengthening evidence-based decision-making and creating a culture of continuous and timely monitoring and measurement;

Welcomes the positive role that tourism can play in the conservation of biodiversity and in fighting climate change, which provides a further argument for enhancing the environmental components of tourism policies and better utilizing the potential of sustainable tourism as an enabling agent of change, and also welcomes the convening of the twenty-eighth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from 30 November to 12 December 2023, and looks forward to the sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, to be held in 2024;

Reiterates its call for the prevention of new and the reduction of existing disaster risk through the implementation of integrated and inclusive economic, structural, legal, social, health, cultural, educational, environmental, technological, political, financial and institutional measures that prevent and reduce hazard exposure and vulnerability to disaster, increase preparedness for response and recovery and thus strengthen resilience, and reaffirms the need for the enhancement of the means of implementation and the capacity and capability of developing countries, including the mobilization of support through international cooperation, for the provision of means of implementation to augment domestic efforts in accordance with their national priorities;

Requests the Secretary-General, in cooperation with the Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization and with other relevant United Nations entities, to submit to the General Assembly at its eightieth session an action-oriented report on the implementation of the present resolution, including concrete recommendations to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in this regard, in the States members of the Central American Integration System, and decides to include in the provisional agenda of its eightieth session the item entitled “Sustainable development”.

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