Speech by President of the Government at inauguration of WTTC Summit

Congress and Exhibition Centre, Seville

President of the Government.- Good day, dear friends, ladies and gentlemen, President of the Regional Government of Andalusia, Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization, Minister for Industry, Trade and Tourism, Mayor of Seville, Government Delegate, Presidents of the WTTC and CEO of the extraordinary company Hilton.

Welcome to Seville. Welcome, and above all, allow me to begin by expressing my gratitude for the 3-billion euro investment announced by the CEO of Hilton and also President of this organisation, the World Travel Tourism Council, and also to congratulate you on the 100th anniversary of your company.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Nothing broadens the mind as much as travel. This is something that humanity verified over the course of history, particularly in recent decades. By travelling, you get to know other people more and better, as indeed you also get to know yourself more and better. And through this dual exploration, both internal and external, the best of the human race has been forged: our ability to empathise and our thirst for knowledge to break physical and mental barriers.

Travelling is not only a question of leisure or a form of professional imposition every so often, it is a basic need, an internal drive that always takes us that little but further.

In reality, there would be not civilisation, no human rights, no scientific or technical progress, as we have seen on these impressive screens, such as we have enjoyed today, if there hadn't been travellers in the past, people who were inquisitive and questioned everything; people with an urge to explore and see new things.

We are what we are today thanks to this source of wonder, to a great extent, that is fuelled by travel. To this melting pot caused by the meeting of different people, as we have in this room here today.

For these reasons, tourism is a way of understanding the world. A way of understanding the world as an open, tolerant and supportive space. A way of seeing the reality that is currently being threatened on different flanks. We are once again hearing talk of walls and re-deployments, of pure identities and occupied nations.

That is why your sector - tourism - is so important nowadays, in my opinion, because, thanks to your work, to your companies, to your organisations, such as this one, we can understand and explore the world as a meeting point, which is what it is - a meeting point. A land of opportunities and not of threats. As a place where, thanks to tourism, the world finds out more about itself. And thanks to that, the world is also more peaceful and more supportive.

Tourism and travel are, hence, essential pillars for human progress, both in material and in symbolic aspects, and even, I would dare to say, in the most intimate regards. And they are also inescapable signs of progress.

The best eras in history have coincided with those eras in which the human race has gone out and travelled and explored. And it was precisely this spirit that gave birth to the WTTC, thanks to which we are here today. And it will have escaped no-one that this raison d'etre is more necessary now than ever before.

One of the greatest sources of pride that any President of the Government feels, including me, is that of being the leader of one of the most tolerant, open and diverse countries in the world.

I believe that this reality is down to the fact, to a great extent, that we are, firstly, the leading global tourism power. 2018 will go down in Spain as the year in which we beat all the records in the tourism sector - in terms of the number of inbound tourists, almost 83 million visited us last year; and in terms of spending and in terms of maintaining our position as the leading global destination.

What is truly significant about all this, about all these milestones, is that these have been reached in a context of the recovery of countries that are traditionally Spain's competitors in this sector.

In other words, we have grown on our own merits and not due to uncertainties and the demerits of others.

For Spain, 2019, the current year, must be a year in which we consolidate the tourism sector; a year in which we tackle other challenges - ongoing innovation, as Gloria rightly reminded us earlier - the opening up of new destinations, sustainability and a less seasonal offer, which is always one of the main challenges facing the tourism sector in our country.

Spain is a great country; the figures all point to that, as do the opinions of those who visit us. People not only come here, which of course is very important, they come back here. Those who try Spain repeat the experience. And this intangible value is not only due to the varied countryside and surprising geography of our country, and not only due to the hours of sun and daylight we have, particularly in Andalusia, and not only due to the character of our people, who are open, tolerant and respectful, but also to the constant ability of our country to surprise travellers.

Allow me to now pause and look at those places that are rarely in the spotlight, but which hide, in my opinion, genuine treasures. I am speaking to you about inland Spain, about secular traditions and genuine gastronomy. I am speaking to you about all that goes beyond the sun and beach tourism offer, which is undoubtedly fundamental, but which also deserves to be discovered by our visitors.

Today I particularly want to call on the need to boost tourism in this fascinating Spain that wishes to open itself up to the world. We have tremendous potential for growth in this rural tourism. And I am convinced that that we will find a way to harness this; not only due to its attraction, but also because this industry represents a great future opportunity to fight one of the main challenges facing our country, which is rural depopulation.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The world has changed a great deal in recent years, and it continues to do so. Earlier we saw a clear example of what the tourism sector may represent in just a few years' time. It is already doing this each day - maintaining a leadership position depends on the ability of sectors to adapt to a shifting world.

It now falls to the tourism industry, as it is already doing, to analyse the reality well, to adapt to it, and to find opportunities that are always at the heart of periods of transformation.

Climate change forces us to be more efficient. Spain is one of the countries at the forefront of the fight against climate change, both in terms of mitigating it and adapting to it.

We are a country exposed to the worst effects of this great global threat to the whole of humanity, which is why we are one of the most committed countries to this genuine challenge, and hence we are one of the most committed countries when it comes to complying with the 2030 Agenda.

And as part of this commitment, the ecological transition of our economy is no mere whim. It is a genuine need which, by the way, offers great future opportunities and which, by the way, over the next decade will see the mobilisation of growing public and private economic resources.

Ladies and gentlemen,

More than 300 million people throughout the planet live and work thanks to the tourism sector. Thanks to your sector, to your commitment and entrepreneurial spirit. This figure should lead us to think about the need to boost sustainable tourism, not only from an environmental point of view, which is clear, but also from a cultural and social perspective.

We have some great allies - artificial intelligence, big data and new forms of mobility - as was outlined here earlier. And also great possibilities to improve the quality of jobs and to fight growing inequalities, both social and gender-related.

For all these reasons, the tourism sector must play a key role in the social and territorial cohesion of our country and combat, in short, false dilemmas.

There are those who say that you can only be either sustainable or efficient; and others that say that inequality is a lesser evil than competitive societies. But you are going to show us that this is not the case, that being sustainable is the only way to be efficient, and that social cohesion is an intangible asset that leads to confidence - self-confidence and confidence in others. And that strengthens the desire to travel and discover new places, the desire to use your companies and your services.

At the start of my speech, ladies and gentlemen, I called on Spain's leading position in this tourism industry, which is so important for us, but I also want to thank those who have always been committed to Spain. There are companies here that have been committed to the development of tourism in our country for the last 40 years, so, thank you.

I am convinced that part of this success of our tourism industry is also down to the institutional strength of a country that found a way to build a solid Welfare State over recent decades.

Investing in security, as this country does, as this society does, means investing in tourism. Investing in infrastructures means investing in tourism. Investing in hospitals also means investing in tourism. That is also part of this country acting as your host.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Your role in the world transcends facts and figures; you represent and defend a way of seeing and understanding the world that is being questioned at this time. You believe in open societies. You believe in mixed societies, in tolerance, in diversity and in mutual respect. You commit to people coming together, different people coming together, and to curiosity and the ability of other cultures to amaze.

That is why we need you now more than ever. The world needs you now more than ever. Society needs you now more than ever to banish mistrust, to broaden horizons and to not build walls or create new borders.

Thank you, welcome to Seville, welcome to Andalusia and welcome to Spain.

(Transcript edited by the State Secretariat for Communication)

Non official translation