Bucharest, September – World Tourism Day, celebrated on September 27, brings to the fore this year the vital role of tourism as an instrument of peace. The Federation of the Hotel Industry of Romania (FIHR), together with the Association of Tourism Teachers and Mentors “Edu4Tourism” and the Smart City Brașov Association, mark this day by exploring the theme proposed by the World Tourism Organization, within the framework of an international conference held in Brașov – “Tourism, Peace and Education for an Interconnected World”, addressing how tourism can contribute to building and maintaining peace, through education and sustainable practices.
At the European Union level, tourism has a strong economic impact, with 10% of GDP, through 2 million businesses and 10 million employees, according to HOTREC, the voice of European tourism, a confederation of which FIHR is a member, along with 46 other national associations. On the occasion of World Tourism Day, each country emphasizes that the field should not be seen only as an economic activity, but, in the current context, primarily as an absolutely necessary structural element for preserving peace, a catalyst for dialogue and understanding between countries and cultures.
"On World Tourism Day, through roundtable discussions, we will address topics such as the importance of education and continuous learning in tourism, the role of competitions in maintaining intercultural dialogue and understanding, and what are the most effective methods of aligning study programs to the specific needs of the tourism and hospitality field, in order to ensure professional training appropriate to the practical challenges we face.", declares Simona Constantinescu, president of the Romanian Hotel Industry Federation.
Romania was recently represented, through the support of FIHR, at the WorldSkills 2024 competition, in which 1,400 competitors from 70 countries showcased their exceptional skills in practical tests conducted on 59 specializations, in four days of competition with an audience, in Lyon, which has become a true global skills hub. The WorldSkills Lyon 2024 event was opened by President Emmanuel Macron and took place concurrently with a two-day conference that brought together some of the most important and influential voices on the global governmental, non-governmental, business scene from different industries, education, etc., a platform that brought the opportunity to connect and dialogue about trends, innovations and ideas, with the objective of putting technical and vocational education at the top of the global agenda.
"Education is the pillar through which the tourism and hospitality sector develops sustainably, therefore, this year, on World Tourism Day, we will bring the educational community to the table for discussions, along with institutional and non-governmental representatives. With fresh feedback from WorldSkills, a major global competition, we will have the opportunity to exchange ideas about the impact of skills development on our field, but also to celebrate talent in the tourism educational community.", adds Simona Constantinescu.
On September 27, the national competition for the WorldSkills 2025 edition will also be launched, with a pre-selection stage for Romania's training batch for the Hotel Receptionist competition (specialization that I participated in a week ago in Lyon), followed by the final selection stage in February 2025.
More details about the program dedicated to World Tourism Day can be found here. here.
