WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO TALK ABOUT TOURISM?

Tourism when considered as an Industry was one of the most vibrant industries that had a rise in a major portion of the countries across the globe. Moving from an industry that was predominantly for leisure to business and beyond, Travel and Tourism has today become part and parcel of life and equally a material figure in a nation’s GDP accounting to 10.4 percent of the total GDP worldwide in the year 2019 (statista, 2021). Tourism in its definition generates revenue to economies to thrive and prosper, it creates employment opportunities, develops the infrastructure of the country and also promotes cultural exchange between nations in good faith.

With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tourism industry has encountered greater challenges and a notable set back leaving behind services, occupations and the prosperity of nations at the verge of depletion. In this very same global village as a result of increasing globalization, the existence of nations in isolation is a daunting task as the world is connected and interdependent. As for this matter of fact, it is extremely important to cease pondering over the pathetic situation that over took the world by surprise and prepare to establish informed plans in the venture towards restoration of the industry to normalcy, and the only way to do so is to be a part of a platform that is exclusively designed to express and shed light to the information backed by adequate research together with the composition of a network to share useful information. It is equally vital to ensure that each individual take precautionary measures as per advised by authorities to ensure that one’s negligence would not cost the liberty and freedom of another and to be able to experience as desired in the best possible manner. It is of huge importance to ensure the information gained is from legit sources as in the time of unrest there is a huge possibility for information to be distorted, therefore attending a Conference for information and recognition is certainly a decision one has to be very particularly concerned about.

The 8^th International Conference on Hospitality and Tourism Management (ICOHT 2021) is a CPD UK Certified Conference that has met the criteria for maintaining International standards set by the CPD Certification Service. The Conference is hosted by the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management, Florida International University, USA and is organized by The International Institute of Knowledge Management (TIIKM) under the theme ‘Post-Pandemic Tourism and Hospitality’. This year the Conference focuses on learning the best practices from around the world in rebuilding, as since the beginning of the year 2020 the Tourism and Hospitality industry has been struggling in an unprecedented manner, facing the biggest global challenge in 100 years. The Conference will be Co-Chaired by Dr. Chandana Jayawardena, International Ambassador and Past President of the Institute of Hospitality (HCIMA), UK and Prof. Dr. D.A.C. Suranga Silva, Secretary General, Tourism and Hospitality Educators and Researchers Association of Asia (THERAA). The Keynote Forum will be represented by Dr. Paul Willie, Past President of the Ontario Chapter of the Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) Association and Chairperson of the Certification Advisory Council, HFTP Global together with Dr. Mihee Kang, Director of Asia-Pacific, and Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC). The plenary forum will be represented by Dr. Yanki Hartijasti, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia and Dr. Sumith De Silva, Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications, Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Limited, Sri Lanka. The Conference comprises of 7 Internationally Peer reviewed Journals indexed in major indexing sources such as Scopus and the Conference also provides the avenue of publishing with the Conference Proceedings.

For more information on the Conference, please visit https://tourismconference.co/.