The United Nations has formally adopted new tourism employment indicators as part of its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) indicator framework, indicating a critical recognition of the role of tourism in global development. The move, approved at the 56th session of the United Nations Statistics Commission, ensures that for the first time tourism employment is systematically monitored within the SDG framework. This update will expand the number of official SDG tourism indicators from 2 to 3, enhancing tourism contributions to economic and social progress. Zurab Pololikashvili, Director General of Tourism, underscored the importance of new indicators in measuring the impact of tourism beyond GDP, allowing policymakers to address inequality and maximize sector benefits.
Developed in collaboration with Austria, Spain, Saudi Arabia, CARICOM, the International Labour Organization (ILO), and UN tourism, this indicator provides important labor market insights by tracking the country's tourism levels. With tourism accounting for 5.6% of global employment between 2015 and 2023 and playing an even more important role in small island developing countries (SIDS), this data will help promote policies that support sustainable tourism growth. This indicator is integrated into the UN SDG report and database to provide valuable information to government and industry stakeholders to nurture a more inclusive and resilient tourism sector around the world.
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Source: United Nations Tourism
