UN Tourism Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, Aims to Establish Madrid as a Symbol of International Tourism With New Headquarters

UN Tourism’s (former UNWTO) new headquarters presentation is expected to take place amid upcoming elections for the Secretary-General, which will be held in May in Madrid, the capital city that hosts the UN agency.

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Five candidates are racing to lead the organization, requiring the support of 18 out of 35 voting countries to succeed. Current chief Zurab Pololikashvili faces strong contenders, including the former Greek Minister of Tourism, Harry Theoharis, and the former Secretary of Tourism of Mexico, Gloria Guevara, who has garnered public support from representatives of major international hotel chains such as Hilton and Hyatt.

Pololikashvili seeks for a third term

UN Tourism Secretary-General assured that despite being in the middle of the election race, he has not changed his agenda and remains focused on pending projects. He also highlighted that his strategy would keep focus on three pillars: education, sustainable tourism, and investments.

In this regard, he highlighted the success of the 'Best Villages of the World' campaign, which has already attracted 250 municipalities from five continents. "Thanks to this initiative, we are helping them attract innovation and investments; we are also helping to put them on the map and make them known to many people," he noted.

Secretary-General explained that the goal of this project is to attract 500 villages and build a digital marketplace where these municipalities can share their products. "It is a process that requires time, patience, and money," he stated.

Pololikashvili also defended the plan for regional offices initiated during his tenure. "We will soon open offices in Rio de Janeiro and Rabat, and two years ago we opened an office in Riyadh. These offices allow us to have a stronger presence on the ground and daily interaction with the territory," he added.

New headquarters in Madrid to be presented during 2025

The Secretary-General commented that the new UN Tourism headquarters in Madrid ‘Congresses Palace’ will be presented in 2025. “The HQ will be located just opposite the Santiago Bernabéu stadium, enabling tourism promotion and collaboration with embassies,” Pololikashvili declared.

“Everyone knows that UNESCO is in Paris or FIFA is in Zurich, we want to make Madrid a symbol of international tourism," said Pololikashvili.

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